Blazblue Chronicles: Ragna of Baghdad
by howlin blood
Summary: Ragna returns to his home after many years. He finds out that his family has mysteriously been disappeared. His truth-finding mission only leads him to the deepest and darkest secrets of Baghdad. Set in AU.
1. Summary

**Disclaimer: I do not own the video game series by the name of Blazblue and neither its iconic characters. They all belong to Arc System Works. The above disclaimer is also applicable to Disney's Ips as well as others which I would be using on this fanfic.**

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 **Introduction**

Ragna returns to his home after many years and he finds that his brother and his father have mysteriously disappeared. Ragna truth-finding mission regarding his family disappearance only involves him in the deepest and darkest secrets of Iraq; the greatest Super Power of the ancient world.

Welcome to its capital, The Magnificent City of Baghdad. A cultural centre, where people from the different cultures; both from the East and the West, travel here to chase their dreams. Where traders from all nooks and corners of the world come in the hopes of selling their merchandise at best possible prices. Where scholars come with an aspiration to study in its (Baghdad) premier Universities and its world-class libraries.

A place where its inhabitants are more scared of police than robbers and thieves. A place where tension between creeds is at an all-time high. A place where neighbours burn each other homes on petty of excuses; where lynching is a common sight. A Stronghold of the Munayad Dynasty.

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 **Characters (Will Be Updated)**

 **Vampirherzen family** : One of the most ancient noble families of Baghdad. They trace their family lineage to Belgrade, Serbia. Accused to have been descended from Arnold Paule; a legendary and a notorious hajduk of Serbia. An accusation which Vampirherzen family members feverishly denies.

Ragna Vampirherzen: The hero of the story. One of the selected few students of the enigmatic mystic Hali. Ragna is currently investigating his family disappearance.

Jin Kisaragi-Vampirherzen: The brother of the protagonist; who have said to have gone missing prior to the beginning of the story. He was adopted by his uncle, Andrew Kisaragi during infancy.

Joeseph Vampirherzen: Biological father of both Ragna and Jin. A former student of Darvish Hali. He is a firm believer in Hali's religious philosophies. Currently, his whereabouts are unknown.

Miriam Vampirherzen: Dead wife of Joeseph. She died after giving birth to Jin.

Andrew B. Kisaragi-Vampirherzen: Adopted Jin right after Miriam's death during her childbirth. He is Joeseph's younger brother.

Maia Kisaragi-Vampirherzen: Wife of Andrew. Adopted mother of Jin.

 **Vermillion Family** : Officially, the richest family in Baghdad. They have earned most of their fortune as ship merchants. They're hated by the noble families of Baghdad because of their status as Noveau Rich and also they are not of noble blood. Currently, the family is made up of Edgar, his wife Claire and their adopted daughter Noel. Said to have descended from Bassanio Cotnis of Venice (The Merchant of Venice).

 **Yayoi Family** : A respected noble family of Iraq. They have lost most of their prestige and wealth prior to the beginning of the story. Yayoi family last patriarch was Thomas Yayoi. Other members of Yayoi family include Thomas' wife Martha and their alluring daughter Tsubaki; who was renowned for her flowery beauty even at a young age. The Yayoi family is said to have ancient links to Babylon.

 **Savafif Order** : An eminent Sufi order. Besides educating their students in mysticism. They also trained them on sword fights. Their followers are usually characterized by wielding broadsword or Zweihander. It is not a militant Sufi order. They only train their students in self-defence; as they firmly believe that true wisdom comes with the conquest of both the mind and the body.

Darvish Hali of Samarkand: A Central Asian Mystic from Uzbekistan. He is the current Sheikh (spiritual head) of the Savafif order of Mystics. He is the first beastkin Sheikh of the order. He is highly charismatic; attracting a huge crowd wherever he goes.

 **Agrabah Kingdom** : A small but flourishing kingdom in the middle east, which is being ruled by the beloved and just Sultan Hamed Bobolonius II. Sultan Hamed is widowed but has a beautiful daughter by the name of Crown Princess Jasmine who is engaged to her love of her life, Archduke Aladdin Cassim.

Both the Kingdom of Agrabah and the NOL empire seems to have a fragile alliance going around that could break down quite easily. With NOL empire having a keen interest in securing the vibrant port of Agrabah.

 **Munayad Caylipate** : The current ruling family of NOL/Iraqi Empire. They are not natives of Iraq. A dynasty founded by Nuawyiah I of Munayad clan of Najib, Al-Arabi Peninsula. Their huge empire extends from Levant to Caucasus to Northern Africa. They are more of a dynasty than a true caylipate. As Caylips comes to powers only from Bayat (common's men vote). They only used the name of caylipate to attach divine justification for their dynasty.

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 **Jargons**

 **Kazi** : A typical Kazi serves two-pronged functions. He is primarily the magistrate or judge of the court, while simultaneously exercising the same powers as the chief of police. He is also responsible for controlling food prices in the NOL empire.

 **Glosticism** : The official religion of NOL empire. It is the largest religion in the world, having a lot of devoted adherents. Unfortunately, Glosticism has been plagued by creedal problems for some centuries now, which has claimed a lot of lives on both sides. Adherents Glosticism are commonly known as Glostians.

 **Eaglers** : Mainstream creed of the great religion Glosticism. It has the largest adherent, almost Ninety percent of Glostians belong to this branch of the creed. Ragna belongs to this creed of Glosticism.

 **Cathlers** : A minority creed. Approximately 10 percent of Glostians are the members of this creed. Their religious practice differs greatly with that of mainstream Eaglers. Honestly, speaking lot of their practices were not even native to the original Glosticism; e.g their different praying style or celebrating Chrismas on different days in comparison to typical Eaglers.

 **Caylip** : A title given to the ruler of NOL/Iraqi empire. The title of Caylip denotes that he or she is given Divine Responsibility from Logos (God of Glosticism) to rule over common men.

 **Caravanserai** : It is a roadside inn where travelers (caravaners) could rest and recover from the day's journey. Garghabazar is considered the premier caravanserai in Baghdad. Garghabazar is one of the main settings of "Chapter 1: Homecoming".

 **Sharab** : An alcoholic drink that is usually made from grapes, but can also be made from other fruits or flowers. It is made by fermenting the fruit with water and sugar. It is prohibited by the ancient religion of Glosticism and hence it is banned in Iraq. Bootleggers earn massive profits from smuggling sharab cases from the distilleries to the caravanserai (Inn) where it is being drunk by its rich patrons.

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 **Hello, everyone Howlin Blood here. The summary section of this story will always be updated on every new chapie. So the new readers would not be forced to read the previous chapter in order to enjoy the latest chapter of this story. You just need to read the summary and then jump to the latest chapter.**

 **However, I would like my readers to imagine Baghdad in the same manner as they would imagine Agrabah. In fact, Bagdad was supposed to be the main setting for Disney's Aladdin (1992) until Roy Disney asked** **John Musker (one of the directors of the film) to change the name from Baghdad to Agrabah. Also, Disney's Aladdin borrowed a lot of elements from movie The Thief of Bagdad. Which this fanfic is also inspired from.**

 **And finally,** **the cover** **art for this fanfic** **belongs to a Pixiv user by the name of "noco". Until then everyone happy readings.**


	2. Chapter 1: Homecoming

After many years Ragna returns to his manor in Baghdad. He was out studying Mysticism with the famous Darvish of Central Asia Hali; aka Jubei of Samarkand, Uzbekistan. Ragna was well immersed in the estoric studies like his father Joeseph was. His mother, Miriam died during childbirth of his younger sibling Jin. He belonged to one of the most ancient noble families of Iraq Vampirherzen.

When he arrived outside his manor; he found his old home in quite a mess. When he tried to knock on the door; he found that it was already open. Inside, the place even more messed up than it was outside. Various paintings, broken decoration pieces and cutlery sets etc were being thrown on the floor. As if someone ransacked the place.

"What in the hel?" Ragna exclaimed.

"Master Ragna! Is that you?" An old man emerged from the shadows. Ragna immediately knew who he was. It was Pietro Rizolli, the loyal butler who served generations of the patriarch of Vampirherzen family.

"Rizzoli what the fack happened here?"

"Oh, young master if only I knew. Unfortunately, I'm as badly shrouded in the dark as you are. Only recently I have returned from my vacation in Japan. As I returned, I found this place to be quite a mess, I'm afraid. Naturally, I tried to investigate the cause, but Master Andrew Kisaragi coerced me not to look into it any further."

"You mean uncle? Why would he do that?"

"Unfortunately young master I could not deduce that."

"Where is Uncle right now?"

"Well, he is currently staying with Edgar. As you can observe this place is not in a habitable state."

"Thanks, Pietro." Ragna waved him goodbye. He knew where he needed to go next to get his answers.

 **At The Vermillion Residence**

Ragna was again met by shock on seeing the current, decrepit state of the once marvelous residence. It seems like the owner wasn't paying much financial attention to his not so humble abode. The Vermillion Residence used to be the envy of Baghdad.

Since the day Ragna left for Samarkand, he felt that things were not exactly like he used to remember. Regardless this was not his primary concern. He needed to know where his father and his younger sibling were right now. What exactly happened at his own home? There were so many questions on his mind. He knocked on the door three times.

After a minute or so, the door was slightly opened but not enough to reveal the mysterious attendant of the door: "Ummm...Wh..who... i...i.s ittt?" Came out a meek voice of a young female.

This caught Ragna off guard. He was expecting their regular butler Adonis to attend to the door, not some mere child: "Well I'm looking for Mr. Kisaragi. Is he here by any chance?

"Ummm...ummmm...Wh..at kind of busi..ness do yo..u ha...ve wi..wi..with Uncle Andrew?"

 _"Uncle Andrew? What in the hel servant girl?"_ Ragna was offended that a mere servant was referring to his relative as her uncle.

"I believe that is none of your concern you stupid servant girl?" Ragna said the last word as per his reaction.

"I'M NOT STUPID! I'M NOT A SERVANT GIRL EITHER!" The girl suddenly opened the door. It was Noel. She was clearly pissed off.

"Raa..gna? Is that really you? I'm so glad you're here." Noel then hugged Ragna; suddenly getting cherry all of a sudden. Ragna could have sworn that this girl suffers from Bi-polar disorder. She was pissed few seconds ago.

"Jeez Noel! Don't cling on to me like that. Where is Adonis (Vermillion's family butler) by the way?

On hearing Adonis name, Noel looked on the floor. There was a slight hint of sadness in her eyes. Ragna would have asked why she had become so depressed all of sudden, but he had more pressing concerns on his mind: "Noel! Can you tell me where Uncle Andrew is right now?"

"Umm...I'm not really sure where he is right now?"

"What do you mean?"

"He didn't tell me. When I asked father about it, he reprimanded me straight away."

"Well do you have any idea what happened to my father and Jin?"

"Ummmmm...Well, you..see...uncle wa...was..."

"NOEL WHAT THE HEL ARE YOU DOING THERE?" A ferocious voice shouted. The person who shouted came out of the door. It was Edgar Vermillion; father of Noel.

He looked furious as his entire face was all red now. Ragna remembered that Jin once joked that Edgar, appeared like a red, mustached balloon whenever he was incensed. Now Ragna was beginning to see why he (Edgar) looked like one. He is one angry ballon. Ragna was hoping that he wouldn't blow up with increased blood pressure.

Edgar still had locks of blonde hair left on his large forehead; which surprised Ragna as he could have sworn that he would have lost those thin hairline of his, by the time Ragna completed his studies from Samarkand. Oh well, there is still plenty of time that Edgar would go full bald. All in good time. Afterall, the fruit of patience is sweet.

"GO BACK TO YOUR ROOM DAUGHTER."

"Bu..bu..t faaather? He cou...ld help us in finding Jin."

"WHAT THE HEL IS WRONG WITH YOU? YOU'RE STILL HOPING TO BE REUNITED WITH THAT WORTHLESS BOY? WHY ARE YOU STILL WEARING THAT DAM RING? TAKE IT OFF NOWWW!" Edgar forcefully tried to remove the ring from Noel's finger.

"Father please don't..." But all of her struggles were all in vain, as Edgar finally managed to take the ring away from Noel grasp. She could only respond by crying away back to her own room.

"Really now old man? Did you just called my brother a worthless man?" Ragna smoldered.

"It was a slip of tongue Ragna I di...didn't mean any of that."

"The hel it was. But I have more important matters at hands than arguing about your true feelings towards me and my family. Where the hel is my father and my brother Edgar?"

"Ragna please try to understand. I can't give you a proper answer to that question."

"Does your noncooperation means that you were involved in my father and Jin disappearance directly and indirectly?"

"How did you reach such a ridiculous conclusion Ragna? You know that I'm quite fond of your family."

"Well, it doesn't look like you're quite fond of my brother though."

"Ragna please...Both of our interests would be harme..."

Ragna then shoved the approaching Edgar away, as he (Ragna) secretly took something out of Edgar's pocket: "Fack off Edgar. Know this, If you're not with me then you're against me." With that Ragna went away. He knew that Edgar was quite stubborn. If he was determined not tell Ragna anything about his family disappearance, he wouldn't tell him anyway; end of story. His stubbornness was the prime reason why he had become such a successful ship merchant in a short space of time. Though as of right now he doesn't look that much of success in financial terms.

Ragna was on his way towards the local Kazi (chief of police) office in order to file a report regarding Jin and Joeseph sudden disappearance, when he heard a familiar scream from a certain girl: "RAGNAAAAA-SAN WAITTTTT!"

"Noel?" Ragna turned around to spot a certain tiny girl running towards him.

Noel breathing very heavily as she got near Ragna: "Ha..ha..ha..Let me catch my breath...first...ha..ha..ha.." Noel was resting her hands on her knees.

"Noel, why are you here?"

"Ha..ha..ha..Ragna-san..I have something important that would help you..in your search...ha..ha..ha.. search for Uncle Joeseph..ha..ha..ha..ha.."

Noel suddenly hands him a piece of paper: "I found this on Jin's secret cabinet the night he disappeared."

"What? So you were there. Do you know where both of them are right now?"

Noel shook her head: "I wasn't there at the night of their disappearance Ragna-san. I only went there because I wanted to talk to Jin. You know he needs me at special times. However, when I got there. I found his place in quite a mess. I looked for him and Uncle Joeseph everywhere. But I couldn't find them. Then I thought to look for clues in his (Jin's) secret cabinet. Which I found this piece of paper as a result. I hope it's important."

Ragna always wondered why he never knew of the location of the secret cabinet that was installed in their house, many years ago. But he remembered that Noel and Jin were childhood friends. They used to play various games together that involved a secret cabinet. Jin would put cryptic messages on the list items for the scavenger hunt; that Noel and other children would collect for the grand prize. Jin was older than Noel; Ragna remembered. So he acted more like an older brother towards Noel than a friend.

There was something that struck Ragna; what was Noel trying to imply when she said that Jin needed her (Noel) at special times? What kind of special needs that Jin had, that could only be fulfilled by Noel? It couldn't one of those lousy, raging teenage hormones things that's for sure. Jin was too much calm and controlled to act like some sort of animal. It had to be something important. But now is the not the time to ponder on an unrelated mystery. But he would ask Noel about that later on.

Ragna then inspected the piece of paper; it had a foreign letter written to it, 天.

"Ten." Ragna read the foreign letter aloud.

"What was that?" Noel asked.

"Nothing. But thank you for sharing me this." Ranga then takes out a ring from his pocket that he sneakily took out of Edgar's pocket just a while ago: "Take this. I believe you would take better care of it than I ever would. This ring is special for me Noel."

When Noel got hold of the prized ring, Ragna would have sworn that there were sufficient tears in her eyes: "Thank you Ragna-san." She then kissed the ring: "I'm 100 percent sure that you would find Uncle Joesph safe and sound."

"Why would you say that?"

Noel then touched both of her hands on her chest: "Because I know...I just know it... Jin is alive Ragna-san...If Jin is alive, then definitely Uncle Joesph is alive too. Believe me...I believe it with all my heart."

Ragna then patted Noel: "Stupid! You can't really tell whether people are okay or not just by your feelings. But thanks. I really needed that positive outlook of yours Noel. Go home now. Your father would throw tantrum if he found out that you were talking to me."

Noel than waved goodbye: "Okay stay safe. I would be offering special salat (prayers) so that you would be successful in your journey. Bye Ragna-san..." With that, she went away.

Ragna then started to walk towards the Kazi office. The ring that he had just returned to Noel originally belonged to his mother. It was the only memory Ragna had of his mother. But it (ring) ended up on Noel's fingers after both Noel and Jin were caught making out. Both of them had recently hit puberty and could not contain their fascination with the opposite sex. They even, secretly dated each other without anyone's knowledge.

But after getting caught, it was agreed that the only viable solution was that both of them were supposed to get engaged and eventually married. The strange thing back then was that Edgar Vermillion was pretty content with this idea.

The only person who was against this arrangement in first place was Ragna. But Jin assured him that he would only marry Noel after Ragna had completed his studies from Samarkand; after which both of them (Noel & Jin) would be of appropriate age to get married.

When Ragna actually returned from Samarkand he would have expected to attend his younger brother marriage ceremony. But, what he got in return was that both his father and his brother have mysteriously gone missing. Plus his house was a mess. He wanted to get an answer from his Uncle Andrew who was supposedly at Vermillion residence but mysteriously he wasn't there. Then there was Edgar Vermillion, who was determined not to give a straight answer to Ragna; plus for one reason or another, he seems to intensely hate Jin.

What the hel was going on? There were so many questions on Ragna's mind right now. He hoped that his paternal uncle, Andrew Kisaragi would at least be more cooperative than Edgar in giving the answers he sought. But first, he needed to find him. Which for now, Ragna had no clue where his uncle was in the first place. He could use that piece of paper that Noel had given him to kick-start his investigation. Surely the Japanese word Ten meant something important. He could go to the local Kazi office. Yeah, that would be the only option he had right now.

At The Kazi Office

Ragna headed straight towards the complaint registration area. There seated was the fat officer of the law. It looked like he did less of a cardio and more of free training at the restaurants. The officers of Baghdad were notorious for getting free meals from the food vendors, restaurants or even homes; wherever they could poke their dirty fingers on.

Ragna coughed in order to get the fat officer attention who was writing something on a piece of paper; most probably his monthly report on the conditions of Bagdad security. The officer paid no heed to Ragna initial cough. Besides being corrupt the officers of Baghdad were also rude.

So Ragna coughed again. This time, the fat officer looked Ragna in the eye after he stopped his paperwork: "What is it?"

"I want to file a report on my father and my younger brother disappearance."

"Come next month. We got our hands full already." The officer rudely responded.

"The fak! It is your duty to write a police report."

"Who says it is my duty boy? Using insulting language in front of the officer of the law. We can arrest you for that. That is the authority given to me by the Kazi (chief of police) of this city. Plus he (Kazi) is busy. He won't be taking any more reports now. He has more pressing concerns like controlling food prices so that people won't revolt against his holiness Grand Caylip Nazid Ibn Fusian." .

"The hel he is busy?" Ragna was about to fight but then he remembered that the officers of Baghdad wouldn't even bother writing his police report without bribing them first; sufficient money he didn't carry with him right now for such a task.

He could pay the fatty later and the Kazi (chief of police) would magically order an investigation into his family disappearance. Perhaps, it would be better if he could get free information out of him first, regarding what that heck 天/Ten actually meant: "Ummmm sorry for the outburst sir. But could you help me with something if you don't mind?"

"Hahahaha...So you actually realized the extent of my authority boy. I love respectful and obedient citizens like you. So what can I help you with?"

"Yeah, could you tell me what this strange letter actually means?" Ragna handed him the paper that he originally got from Noel.

Officer inspected the piece of paper: "Hmmmm...it's Japanese..." Suddenly the clerk eyes then became wide open: "TEN?"

"I know it says Ten but what does that actually mean?"

"Where...di..d yo...u get tha...t?" The clerk was clearly scared.

"Could you please tell what that means sir?"

"TELL ME! WHERE THE FACK WHERE DID YOU GET THAT?" He immediately draws his sword at Ragna.

"Woah...woah...woah...You really need to calm down." Ragna was clearly psyched out by the sudden and violent change in the clerk's behaviour.

"TELL ME NOW!"

Ragna knew that something was up and if he told him (fat clerk) that Noel was one the who gave him the piece of paper with the strange calligraphy she could be in serious trouble. Her family was influential yes. But the key word is "WAS" influential. Looking back at how bad Noel's family financial situation is right now; he (Ragna) doubted that if he told the clerk the truth her father could not keep her (Noel) away from any serious trouble: "Ummm...I found it lying on the Mutanabbi Street...ummm yeah that's where I found it." Ragna trying to come up with a plausible story.

"LIER!" The clerk then pointed his sword at Ragna's throat, which shifted the majority of the clerks' and the citizens' of Baghdad attention at Ragna and the paranoid clerk. Then one of the colleagues of the paranoid clerk whispered in his ear: "Not now...everyone is watching..." That was the only part of the whisper that Ragna managed to hear.

The paranoid clerk then nodded and he went into the room, where his colleague him escorted to. The paranoid clerk also took the paper that contained the strange calligraphy with him. Ragna figured whatever was happening right now, it would be a terrible idea if he lingered on this place any further. He had to leave this place and fast. If he insisted on getting his paper returned he was sure that he could land in hot water again. Now is the high time to leave this God forsaken place. Besides Ragna had a good memory and he could rewrite that specific word 天 again without much problem.

With that, he left the Kazi office. He headed straight towards the caravanserai (Inn) by the name of "Garghabazar". Garghabazar was one of the premier caravanserai in Baghdad. Ragna originally went there for some food and lodging for the night; as his original home was still not in a habitable state.

"What will it be, stranger?" Asked the caravanserai waiter.

"A large mug of sharab (wine) and a roasted lamb pronto." Ragna ordered. The waiter nodded and went away to fetch Ragna's order. At this point, he (Ragna) was really miserable now. Whenever it looked like he was making some progress, immediately afterward, there would be some sort of sick twist of fate, that would force him to retreat two steps backward. Eating a hearty meal and a nice drink would help him to cheer up for the time being.

However, Ragna's thought process was broken by a sudden announcement from a certain French man. He (French man) had a very, over the top appearance. He had a distinctive, raven handlebar mustache and wore tall red, white and blue top hat and a matching cape. His appearance gave out a vibe of a showman, whose bread and butter clearly depended on his audience attention.

"Gentlemen! I would like your attention, please. For your hearts entertainment, a rare beauty from the mystical land of India would be performing here, at this great establishment tonight. She is a very famous dancer indeed. Trained in such seductive arts by the Goddess of Beauty Lakshmi herself. Surely, all of you fine gentlemen must be presuming that I must be mad to make such grand claims. Wait until you see this alluring creature for yourself."

Suddenly a thin, well-endowed young girl appeared in front of the audience; wearing a scanty, red, bedlah (a belly dancer's costume). Her face was obscured by a red drape covering her head. Only her luscious, red lips were visible, which he (Ragna) wouldn't mind kissing if given the opportunity. Even if her face was concealed Ragna knew that she had a beautiful face. But he could easily speculate that she had a short hair. Weren't the women of India were famous for their long hairs? There was another thing that caught Ranga's eyes. Located on her right side of her fitted top, was a small, yellow badge that looked awfully familiar to Ragna. Oh where, oh where had he seen that trinket before?

The French man then continued: "Feast your eyes on this delicate Kandahar flower. Her milk, white skin, her seductive curves, that were crafted by the executor of a thousand handicrafts; the Hindu Deity Vishwa Karma. Who was forced to use all four of his hands to craft this masterpiece of a human body. She is a rare beastkin. Show yourself, your majesty, QUEEN MAKOTO NANAYA."

The woman then removed the drape from her head, thereby revealing her face; which was so beautiful that Ragna heart skipped a beat. This woman had a brown, bob haircut with fringes, and a two perky set of squirrel ears on her head. She also had a brown, bushy tail located near her rear. This was indeed, a rare beauty.

The girl started to dance gracefully, which brought loud cheers, wolf whistles, and applause at her direction from the patrons of Garghabazar. Some of the patrons, who have accidentally brought their wives with them, were savagely attacked by their better halves, because of their lustful stares. So note to every non-single guy who has a girlfriend or wife. NEVER ENGAGE IN STARING CONTEST WHEN YOUR MISTRESS IS AROUND. Trust me you're gonna regret it.

"This Goddess herself was responsible for the downfall of the Chandragupta Maurya empire. She used to be the concubine of the great king (Chandragupta), you see. But her beauty and her allure attracted the attention of Chandragupta's jealous son Susima; who fell head over her heels. While he could not attain Miss Nanaya by legitimate means. The Crown Prince Susima foolishly conspired to kill his own father just to attain her and he was successful at that. However, this resulted in the demise of both the Crown Prince; who was executed for the treason and the once great empire of Maurya. With no roof left on her head, Miss Nanaya had no choice but to travel around the world to maintain her royal lifestyle with her much demanded skill. So please dear patrons of Garghabazar, contribute as much money as you possibly can for her royal highness."

The entire crowd was rowdy now. They were throwing countless amount of gold coins at Makoto's direction. Ragna knew that most of the claims made by the French man were bogus. Chandragupta Maurya empire never crumbled. In fact, it witnessed its full magnificence at the hands of his grandson, Buddhist Emperor Asoka; one of the greatest ruler of all time. Chandragupta never had a son by the name of Susima, who eventually killed him. The actual name of the Crown Prince was Bindusara who became the second Emperor of Maurya Empire when Chandragupta decided to leave his post, just so he could become a monk of Jainism. In fact, Chandragupta Empire preceded even that of Roman Empire.

The patrons were either too dumb or too much drunk to spot the lies in the French man claims. Speaking of drunk, his food and his sharab (alcohol) had just arrived. Ragna then started to eat his meal. The food and the drinks were mediocre at best. Ragna had eaten better food at other places in Baghdad. But he always preferred eating out at Garaghabazar because it had a certain ambiance to it. It was always full and lively; not like other lifeless and almost empty caravanserai (Inn) of Baghdad; which Ragna hated by the way.

Ragna was now glad that he came to Garghabazar. The spectacular and seductive dancing of Miss Nanaya certainly made his mood a whole lot better from otherwise a very bad day at the office. Maybe he should reward her for her deed. So, Ragna threw some gold coin at her direction; which resulted in Miss Nanaya to momentarily stop dancing and look Ragna in the eye while smiling at him. Ragna smiled back, but suddenly the yellow badge on the right side of her fitted top caught his attention again. He now knew why that dam badge looked so familiar to him. It had a similar Japanese letter to the one that was supposedly calligraphed by Jin the night both he and father disappeared. But this one was bit different though. It was written as 字/Ji.

Maybe he could have a little chat with this beastkin dancer regarding his family sudden disappearance. But the thought itself was naive. As this Indian beastkin (Makoto), apparently had no connection with his family or Iraq in general. She was a traveling dancer for God sake. But Ragna had no choice but to ask Miss Nanaya some serious questions in order to get any possible lead on his family disappearance. If he gets no valuable answer from her, he could at least ask her, where did she get that yellow badge from. That in itself could prove to be a valuable lead, Ragna reasoned to himself.

Suddenly, Ragna felt a strong tap on his left shoulder: "Mind if we join you, handsome young stranger?" One of the men in the group of hooded strangers asked Ragna. There were six of them. They looked quite suspicious to Ragna as their mouths were covered by almost identical, dirty, purple sash and all of them wore a black hoodie over their heads. Perhaps they could be robbers or something. Ragna did not know for sure. But they certainly looked like some distant relative of Mr. Merchant from Resident Evil 4.

Ragna nodded and went back to his drink. These hooded strangers took their seat near Ragna's table and one them, who seemed to be the leader, ordered the waiter: "Brings us twenty-four glasses of sharab." He gruffed.

"Excuse me, sir?" The waiter was freaked out by the strange man, strange order. They were six of them. He could not understand why they needed to drink 24 glasses of sharab.

"WE ARE EXTREMELY THIRTY YOU BAKA! JUST BRING IT." As the stranger banged his fist on the table in a menacing manner.

"Right away sir." The waiter was scared, as he decided to fetch their order as quickly as possible.

"Ah, my lovely Sharab or alcohol as they are called in the West is banned in the ancient land of Iraq. Such shame, if only they knew of its heavenly taste. Unfortunately, the religion of Iraq have strict dietary laws you know and is primarily against sharab. But they are still served in its capital. Must be because Garghabazar is loved by Baghdad police." Rest of the five hooded strangers laughed at their leader strange joke.

"By love, you mean that the Garghabazar's establishment is forced to pay a lot of gold coins to Baghdad police as a bribe huh?" Ragna said as he sipped on his Sharab cup.

All six of the strangers erupted into fits of laughter. One of the six strange men, who seemed to be subordinate exclaimed: "Boss this guy is funny."

The leader of the group then continued: "Well don't you think that the source of all love is money?" All of the five strangers began to cackle like madmen.

The boss of the strange men then continued: "As much as you're handsome. I don't love you. Do you grasp the meaning of my wise words, handsome stranger?"

"Not my problem if you don't love me. People in Baghdad live, work and eat together while they hate each other guts. If you're asking for some money, here take it. That is all I have right now." Ragna then puts some of the money on the table.

The leader of the strangers was now agitated: "DO YOU REALLY THINK THAT WE'RE ARE A BUNCH OF BEGGARS? TIME TO TEACH YOU SOME MANNERS DOG!" The leader and two other strange men were about to attack Ragna.

Ragna, as if on instinct, quickly punched and kicked all three assailants. Which made all three of them fall down on the floor.

The remaining of the three strange men were about attack Ragna when they were stopped by their recently downed leader: "STOP!" The leader shouted, as he got up and removed the sash from his face: "Attacking the officer of the law could land you in serious trouble. Son, you're under arrest for insulting and assaulting under duty police officers."

"Hey, I wasn't responsible for the earlier attack. You guys provoked me. It was an act of self-defence."

"Tell it to the Kazi (chief of police and judge both rolled in one). You're coming with us, whether you like it or not." The rest of the five officers were about to apprehend Ragna when suddenly, a broad metal chain with a head of a black snake attached at front, wrapped around the forearm of one of the apprehending officer: "WHAT?" He exclaimed.

"Hey, there friends! I thought it was quite unfair if you boys decided to pick on a little girl. That's no way to treat a fine lady." Said a green haired individual whose eyes were perpetually closed all of the time. Ragna immediately knew who that snake was. It was that dip sit, Yuki Terumi.

"Who the hel are you?" The boss of the five police officers asked.

Terumi then removed his hat and bowed: "Name's Michael Jackson. But let me ask you a Shakespearean question. What's in a name? If I got the moves and the beat then I'm still The King of Pop even without the name...hahahahaha..."

"Your jokes are are just terrible, stupid kid! But here is the deal estúpido . Release my man now and walk away. We will let you off the hook for your stupid action towards my subordinate." The boss bargained.

"OMG really! Thank you so much, sir. I really think that only stupid actions done by an estúpido (Stupid in Spanish) like me would force me to face your wrath. No..no I don't want that...No sire...No..."

The subordinate whose hands was being constrained by Terumi's Ouroboros asked: "What do you mean?"

Terumi suddenly pulled the officer towards him and smiled evilly: "I mean this stupid action." Terumi brutally and constantly punched the police officer's face to a bloody mess and then threw him at a nearby table. Ragna knew that the attacked police officer was not dead. But attacking the police officer and brutally injuring him would land both him (Ragna) and Terumi on hot waters.

"TERUMI! YOU SIT HEAD! THEY WERE ABOUT TO ARREST ME FOR TWO DAYS! TWO FACKING DAYS! BUT NOW THANKS TO YOU WE COULD END UP IN JAIL FOR NINE WHOLE YEARS YOU MORON!" Ranga shouted.

"Well, you thank me later buddy boy." Terumi creepily smiled at Ragna.

The boss of the five, no four police officers was breathing in a menacing manner: "SEIZE BOTH RAGNA AND THAT WEIRD COMPANION OF HIS NOWWWWWWWWWWWW!"

Ragna just realized that they ended up in an even deeper sit hole than before. Not only four police officers were advancing towards them. There were many more, undercover officers that were present at caravanserai (Inn) that were advancing towards them. There were at least forty-six of them. He (Ragna) had no clue how he could stand up to so many officers at the same time. Both Terumi and Ragna joined their backs together as if they were two brave samurais fighting against the whole army.

"Man, I don't like the stinking idea of ending up in jail for nine whole years." Terumi complained.

"Well, jackass! You shouldn't have brutally assaulted a facking police officer in the first place." Ragna said as he that group of police officers was approaching them fast.

"Well how about we resist those dip sits. Put up a good fight. Know what I'm saying?"

"I HATE IT WHEN YOU'RE RIGHT..." Ragna shouted as he and Terumi simultaneously punched their respective officers away. With that, all of the officers ran towards both Ragna and Terumi. Both Ragna and Terumi attacked their oncoming assaulters with punches, kicks, dodge, and repeat. They managed to take down scores of them. But the wave of police who about to arrest was not to be stopped anytime soon. Ragna knew that odds were heavily stacked against them. But he had to take his chances now. If he ends up jail time now, he would never know what happened to his brother and his father. With that Ragna gave a Super-Man punch to the head of the police officers for good measure.

The fight went on and on. Although both Ragna and Terumi took down a lot of police officers. There still a lot them, that remained. Both of them (Ragna & Terumi) were out of stamina.

"HA..HA..HA..HA..HA..HA..HA..HA.." Both Ragna and Terumi were breathing heavily.

Head of the police who was on the receiving end of Ragna's Super-Man punch announced: "You know what I'm gonna do to you two pieces of dog sits? I'm gonna torture both of you all day long and remove your fingers and your toes so that both of you would never able to raise your hands and legs against officers of the law."

Ragna knew they were done and dusted. His truth-finding mission would end right away. Along with his limbs. He was clearly scared and so he decided to pray to Lord Almighty to save their asses from this mess. If Mighty Lord decides to save Ragna alone and not Terumi because he is the worst kind of sinner. Ragna wouldn't mind that option either. Terumi definitely deserved to go to hel especially for how stupidly he acted today.

Out of nowhere, six pellets were being thrown at the police officers direction. Suddenly from the pellets, there was smoked that was being released which made all forty-six started to cough and their eyes started to burn. Ragna then tried to locate their mysterious benefactor. It was that Indian Beastkin Dancer; Makoto Nanaya.

Why did she (Makoto) took the risk and helped Ragna in the first place? Was it because he had thrown some gold coins for dance performance and she decided to return him the favour? No that was not possible. By helping Ragna the good ol' police of Baghdad would surely be on her bushy tail from now on. Dam it! Why was a belly dancer even carrying smoke pellets in the first place? Nothing made sense.

Ragna then shook his head and shouted: "COME ON! THIS OUR CHANCE. LET'S GO!" Both Ragna and Terumi exited the Garghabazar.

Outside, Terumi the wiped sweat from his forehead: "Man that was close...Mmmm...hmmmm I'm quite thirty. I think, I will fetch myself a nice, cold drink now." Terumi was about to move back to the Garghabazar when his right arm was grabbed by Ragna: "Stupid! Why the hel would you even want to go back to that place, when the Baghdad finest would not hesitate to give our limbs some Phantom Pain."

The last time Ragna came close to losing one of his precious limbs was when both Ragna and Jin were young kids. Both of them were playing sword fights with real swords, and Jin got over excited was about to amputate Ragna's right arm. But, thankfully his right arm remained intact. Otherwise, Ragna would have been forced to use some convenient, plot device, of an arm that contains a lot of evil energy and a whole lot of unwanted attention. THE HORROR! After that Ragna proceeded to spank Jin's ass so much that his (Jin's) cheeks started to blush like some school girl in love.

"Oh yeah! Sorry, that thought never crossed my mind. So what are we gonna do now? Run from them all night?"

"Hel no! We need to find a Safehouse and fast."

"Man I really want to do that running all night thing, ya know. It would be a good workout. A guy gotta stay lean and fit. Oh, I got an idea. How about we vote? I vote for running all night." Terumi raised his right hand for his vote.

"No! We are not gonna vote Terumi. And most importantly, do you have a Safehouse or not?"

"As a matter of fact, I do. And it's not far from here." Terumi said as he pointed his right index finger in a specific direction.

"Good take me there."

 **Safehouse**

"This doesn't look like a good place to hide. Where the hel are we Terumi?

"Chill Rags. This used to be a storage facility but now it's abandoned but there is a secret hiding place." Terumi smiled.

"Oh good! Show me where that secreting hiding place is?"

"I would gladly." Terumi immediately took out his twin butterfly knife: "But you owe me a workout Rags."

"Dam it Terumi!" Ragna cursed. He knew that Terumi was stupid; mad even. But he wouldn't that much mad that he would decide to pick a sword fight with Ragna right about the time when all forty-six police officers were searching for their asses. Ragna took out his Zweihänder in order end this fight quickly.

"Now Rags may the best man win. Plus no cheating. Only I'm allowed to do that." Terumi winked. With that, both Terumi and Ragna charged at each other.

* * *

 **So there you go, guys. The end of chappie 1. Well, I have to make a confession. The cover pic of the story is at total dissonance with my story. I wanted to find an image with Ragna, Terumi and Kagura together. I couldn't find that pic anywhere. Then I tried searching for the images of either Ragna with Terumi or Ragna with Kagura and the results were HORROR. So I went ahead with this cover pic instead. The problem I have this cover pic is that Jin would not appear in this story. Of course, Celica and Noel would appear as supporting characters. So I'm both satisfied and dissatisfied with this cover pic. Until then readers. This is Howlin Blood signing off.**


	3. Chapter 2: The Library of Alexandria

**Just to avoid any confusion. The Blazblue's character by the name of Jubei is set to appear in this chapter as Darvish Hali of Samarkand. In simple terms, both Darvish Hali and Jubei of the Six Heroes are one and the same. This has even been hinted in the Summary Section of this fanfic. Okay everyone read, review and enjoy.**

* * *

Ragna and Terumi charged at each other. Both sharp blades perfectly colliding with each other in a musical harmony. Whatever swing Ragna made with his Zweihander would be blocked by Terumi. Whatever slashes Terumi attempted with his quick butterfly knives would be blocked by Ragna. Sometimes even if both of the blady orchestra players attack each other simultaneously, they would simply compliment each other's metallic tunes.

Ragna was hoping that his Zweihander would give him a basic advantage in a sense that even if Terumi manages to block his attack, the huge weight of the Zweihander combined with Ranga's raw power would be enough to shake his (Terumi) body sufficiently to make him fall down at least or break his wrist at best.

However, none of that happened. Sure, Terumi body shook whenever he blocked Ragna attacks. But it was a kind of collision he could have easily bear. But Ragna, on the other hand, was already feeling a bit weary as he was carrying much, much heavier blade on his hand.

"Ragna-Chan! That is not the only trick that I have in my sleeves." Terumi deviously smiled as he released his Ouroboros snake aimed for Ragna's head.

Just in a nick of time, Ragna manages to dodge it as the snake crashes on the empty cases of sharab (alcohol) bottles. _Wait! Was this sharab warehouse? Why was there even sharab cases lying on this warehouse in the first place? Isn't it suppose to be illegal?_ There were so many questions in Ragna's mind right now. But now he must focus on defeating Terumi first.

"You lucky devil hehehehe..." Terumi immediately jumped at Ragna and then attack him with his twin butterfly knives but Ragna was able to hold his attack at a standstill. At this point, both were using their brute strength to push each other unsuccessfully: "That was my trump Ragna-Chan."

"SO TRUMP THIS! SKELETON FACE!" Ragna shouted as he successfully shoved Terumi away with his Zweihander. But Terumi instead of falling down on the ground did a perfect backflip like an experienced gymnast.

"You're tired Rags. Let me put you to a long peaceful sleep." He then began his fresh assault on the tired swordsman. Whenever Ragna swings his giant sword at Terumi, the green haired bladesman would easily dodge it and counterattack by giving cuts to Ragna arms, legs, and his chest with his butterfly knives: "AHHHHHHH!" Ragna screamed in pain.

"DID THAT HURT RAGNA-CHAN? WAS THAT PAINFUL? OF COURSE, IT WAS. YOU ARE SCREAMING LIKE A LITTLE BISH! AHAHAHAHAHAHA!" Terumi cackled.

Ragna knew by this point, he had expended most of his energy. By forcing himself to attack Terumi with his brute strength alone; he was sacrificing precision for wild swings which allowed that little snake to dodge his attacks easily. Ragna decided to change his strategy this time around. He would sacrifice his powerful blows for the precise attack. This is what he needs to do right now. So he begins to assault Terumi with this new approach in mind.

As expected Terumi was not able to dodge Ragna attacks as he now was forced to block. This played right into Ragna's hands. Terumi himself was getting tired. So with each powerful yet focused blows from Ragna, Terumi was slowly but surely losing his stamina. He was already feeling the visceral intensity of Ranga blows as he blocked. This went on and on until Ragna was successfully able to disarm one of Terumi's butterfly knives. Now Terumi was left with only one knife to defend himself with.

"One down. One more to go bish." Ranga gleed.

"Ahhh my lovely, naive Ragna-Chan. You think I'm gonna lose to a cockroach like you? Then say hello to my BIG FRIEND." As Terumi released his large snake at Ragna.

Ragna rolled out of the way in a very Dark Soulish manner. This was officially his boss fight. The Ouroboros was a bigger threat to Ragna than that Idiot King Terumi.

"Ohhhhh! Nice dodge Ragna-Chan. But you'll have to do better than that."

Just as the humongous snake came within a touching distance of tearing Ragna's gluteus maximus apart, he was able to make a huge, ninja-like leap into the air just in a nick of time.

This was certainly a dirty tactic from Terumi, as he wanted to make sure that Ragna would not be able to go into the toilet in the near future again. Going into the toilet was the second most favourite waking up in the morning activity for Ragna; breakfast being number one. Dam! Terumi was devious. Though Terumi being evil for Ragna was not a major shocker.

"Ragna-Chan why are you avoiding this poor thing? He just wanted a bite at the Big Mac-arse...hahahaha...You know it's one SOLID SNAKE once you get to know him...hahahaha... As Terumi patted his snake. The Ouroboros then followed Ragna into the mid-air.

"Dam it!" Ragna hissed as the Ouroboros snake came within the touching distance of harming him. Terumi's giant, metallic snake might be quick. But its large frame also had one critical disadvantage, which Ragna could use in his favour. When it looked like the snake was about to eat Ragna, he immediately used the ceiling of the warehouse as a launching pad to get down quickly. The snake couldn't stop in its tracks, as it was traveling at a great velocity and was forced to crash out of the ceiling of the warehouse. Thereby buying Ragna some time.

Ragna knew this wasn't the end for that persistent buster. He would come back to haunt his as again. He was counting on it.

"Ragna-Chan hahahaha! That was brilliant wooohooo! You have entertained me quite well. But, unfortunately, this is the end for you." As the snake broke through the roof to enter the warehouse again.

"I thought this was your work out. You're doing nothing but lazying around." Ragna shot back.

"Hehehehe...I guess you're right..."

Ragna then held his Zweihander to his eye level and from its reflection, he observed that the Ouroboros snake was positioning itself behind him. The Ouroboros snake and Ragna were positioned at twelve o'clock; whereas was located Terumi at two o'clock. That gave Ragna an idea.

First, there was a close-up shot of Ragna's eyes. Then there was a close-up of Terumi's (perpetually closed) eyes. Then the camera pans to Ranga's hands and then it pans to Terumi's hands. As if both of them were cowboys who were about to go into a duel. Finally, in between them, a single leaf passes by.

"Full-steam ahead...Cho...cho.." Terumi smiled. As if on cue, the snake raced towards Ragna at an insane speed. Ragna remained calm as he focused on looking at the Ouroboros snake's reflection from his sword. When the giant vermin came at a suitable distance Ragna quickly stabbed his Zweihander into the ground and immediately jumped into the air. The Ouroboros snake, after getting its head rammed against Ragna's Zweihander changed its course from twelve o'clock to two o'clock where Terumi was situated at.

"Oh sit!" Was all Terumi could say as he was being involved in a powerful collision with his giant, metallic pet, which resulted in both of them crashing on the nearby crates.

When Ragna landed back to his feet he exclaimed: "STRIKE!"

Terumi was already seeing a lot of stars on a clear, blue night. Ragna then offered his hands to Terumi: "I hope you like the taste of your own medicine?" Ragna joked.

"Hahahahhahaha...You always crack me up." As Terumi accepted Ragna hands and got up. Suddenly both of them heard the voices of the police officers whom they were trying to evade all night.

"CHECK EVERY HOUSES...!"

"LEAVE NO STONES UNTURNED...!"

"FIND THEM AND BRING THEM TO ME...!"

When Ragna turned around he saw that Terumi was already on the other side of the room as he held aloft a secret trapdoor on the floor: "I don't know about you Ragna-chan. But I'm outta here."

"I'm coming too dam it!"Both Ragna and Terumi jumped into the hidden trapdoor. It didn't have any stairs as it was more like a slide; a very long, scary slide.

The trapdoor automatically closed itself. The police of Baghdad immediately enters the warehouse where Terumi and Ragna were engaged in a Mortal Kombat not so long ago: "SEARCH EVERY NOOK AND CRANNY OF THIS GOD DAM PLACE!" The head of the police barked as his men begin the search.

 **Meanwhile Back to Ragna and Terumi**

It was not a short slide, in fact, it was a long one as Ragna found out. He was screaming like a little girl or more appropriately like a fearful bear who had just crapped his pants: "AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

"WEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! ISN'T THAT FUN RAGNA-CHAAAAN?" Terumi wailed in joy.

"TERUMI YOU SIT HEAD! I'M SO GONNA KILL YOUUUUU! WHEN I GET MY HANDS ON YOUUUU!" As the slide ended both Terumi and Ragna ended up in the underground sewers. Ragna then tried to compose himself and processed all the information he got so far. Right now they were in a secret passageway that was directly connected to the warehouse that was being owned by Terumi. On the warehouse, there were some cases of Sharab (alcohol) being stored there. Terumi being the suspicious guy he is. Ragna concluded that he is running a smuggling ring that involves alcohol: "Terumi! You're running a bootleg operation. Aren't you?"

"Hey, Ragna-Chan how is a guy suppose to make an honest living?"

"It's not an honest living. Dam it!" Ragna grabbed Terumi by his collar

"What's wrong Ragna-Chan? You seem agitated."

Ragna tightened his grip on Terumi's collars: "You wenker! Everything is wrong. Why the hel did you attacked that police officer in the first place? Now we're both wanted men thanks to you. I might even have an ugly as wanted picture of me on the streets that would create a strong urge in me to tear that dam thing into pieces."

Terumi touched Ragna arms that were holding his collar and then gave out a creepy smile: "Ragna-Chan! Is that the thanks, I get for saving your stinkin as?"

"THANKS? FOR WHAT YOU ASHOLE?"

Terumi finally opened his golden, snake-like eyes: "Ragna-Chan do you really think that they weren't going to arrest you before my... _cough_...intervention?"

"OBVIOUSLY YOU PRICK!"

"Then why did those police officers harassing you while disguised as Mr. Merchant Guy from Resident Evil 4 huh? Not only that, but they were even about to assault you. Or how about they know your name for a change. Doesn't any of that sound suspicious to you?"

"What?"

 _~Flashback~_

 _The boss of the five, no four police officers was breathing in a menacing manner: "SEIZE BOTH RAGNA AND THAT WEIRD COMPANION OF HIS NOWWWWWWWWWWWW!"_

"Furthermore Ragna-Chan you even called me out by my own name on Garghabazar and that actually broke my heart. Now they also know I am."

"HA..HA..HA..HA..HA..HA..HA..HA..What..the..hel...is...going on...HA..HA...?" Ragna was breathing heavily.

"I don't know Ragna-Chan. But it would be a good start if you remove your hands from my collars."

"HA..HA..Oh sorry..HA..HA.." As Ragna removes his hands from Terumi's collars. Things were getting more & more mysterious. Whatever Terumi said had a logical reasoning behind it. Those undercover officers clearly knew who Ragna was. There was no doubt about that. They (undercover cops) were also about to attack Ragna before Terumi's intervened. Maybe, just maybe, Terumi vicious attack on one of those cops made a bad situation already worse. But one thing is for sure, those coppers were clearly looking for Ragna.

But why would they be looking for Ragna in the first place? He didn't do anything that was harmful to the state's interest. He wasn't a terrorist or a vicious criminal. Was it simply because Ragna was investigating into his family disappearances and the cops didn't want him to look into the matter any further? That theory in itself was ridiculous as he didn't tell them (police) that his family had disappeared when he went to the Kazi (a person who serves both as the chief of police and judge of a city) office for his personal inquiry.

Maybe they only came after Ragna when the clerk at the Kazi office became hysterical on seeing the piece of paper containing the Japanese word 天/Ten. The clerk even raised his sword on Ragna's throat and demanded where he got that piece of paper from in the first place. One thing is for certain. Things were not what they seemed.

"You also owe me both a thank you for saving your as and an apology for being an ungrateful twerp."

"AAAAAHHHHH! I hate it when you're right. But thanks Terumi for saving my worthless as and sorry for my outburst earlier."

"None taken Rags. Now if you would be kind enough to follow me." Ragna gestured Terumi to lead the way.

 **Two weeks later**

Ragna was still fruitless in his search regarding the current whereabouts of his father Joeseph and his younger brother Jin. To make matters worse he couldn't even locate Jin's foster father Andrew anywhere; in order to get straight answers from him. Ragna was starting to fear that either Andrew himself was missing along with his family or Andrew himself was behind his brother and his father disappearances. The latter theory in itself was self-contradictory as Andrew had practically raised Jin like his own son and he (Andrew) would never do anything that would cause harm to his biological brother Joeseph unless there was some sort of conflict between them (Joeseph & Andrew) that Ragna wasn't aware of.

The only clue that Ragna had right now was the strange calligraphy given to him by Noel and supposedly authored by Jin. He needed to find out what that dam symbol (天) actually meant in the first place. To find out answers Ragna was heading for the Ancient Library of Alexandria in the Al-Kindi Street, Harithiya district of Baghdad.

On his way to the library, Ragna realized that the chaos had erupted throughout the Al-Kindi Street. Most of the houses in the neighborhood had burned to the ground. A young, beautiful woman by the name of Arzoo was frantically crying on seeing her husband Babak being surrounded by a mob who intended to give him street justice: "NOOOOOOOO! I BEG ALL OF YOU TO RESTRAIN YOURSELF! OUR HOUSEHOLD WOULD NOT LAST LONG WITHOUT OUR BREAD WINNER!"

A priest who seems to be leading the mob replied: "Hold off your tongue female conspirator! You should be thanking Almighty Lord for these men are not punishing you for murdering and then serving little Hayo dead body in your rice dish to your neighbors. Your husband life must be forfeited in the name of justice."

"THESE ALL ARE BASELESS SLANDER PRIEST! I COULD NOT EVEN FATHOM ON MARTYRING THE POOR CHILD OF MR. MIYAZAKI! I LOVED HIM LIKE MY OWN FLESH AND BLOOD!" Arzoo pleaded.

"NO MORE LIES WITCH! WHY WAS RIFAN FOOD POISONED AFTER CONSUMING YOUR ACCURSED DISH? SURELY YOU DID NOT FEED HIM GOAT MEAT!"

"I KNOW MY BARGAINING POSITION HAS WEAKENED! A GOAT MEAT WAS THE MAIN INGREDIENT IN MY DISH. MRS. DUMAS, OUR MAID WOULD BE WILLING TO TESTIFY MY CLAIMS! SHE PREPARED THE DISH WITH ME!" The beautiful Arzoo was literally crying.

"NO MORE LIES HARPY! YOUR STORY STILL CANNOT EXPLAIN THE DISAPPEARANCE OF LITTLE HAYO!" The priest reprimanded.

Babak who tried to put up a brave face in front of his wife assured: "It's okay my love! Be brave for the sake of our daughter." As slight tears streamed down on Babak's face.

Ragna scanned his surroundings and then he realized that the police officers of Baghdad were acting as mere spectators on this entire drama. They would rather allow this mob to kill an unarmed man rather than to stop it.

Ragna realized that he was wearing a black dress. Black dresses were usually worn by the minority and persecuted creed of Baghdad, Cathlers. Which the woman Arzoo and her soon to be executed husband Babak also belonged to. Cathlers had worn black dresses as a sign of historical mourning; as their creed founder Saint Klaus The Silent and his family were brutally murdered by then Emperor Rayazid The First. Because of Saint Klaus refusal to endorse the Emperor Rayazid as the rightful ruler. This event created permanent cleavage in the great religion of Glosticism.

Ragna was obviously raised in the majority Eaglers creed. However, if he stayed in this place any longer, the mob could mistake him as one of the Cathlers and would blame him for the murder of little Hayo. He would share the same horrific fate as that of Babal. Ragna didn't want to end up like that. So he ran as fast he could and dashed straight towards the Ancient Library of Alexandria. But to his bad luck, it was closed. Ragna then violently knocked on the library door in desperation. When this didn't work, he was then forced to ram his shoulder onto the door to get the librarian attention, but it was to no avail.

Today was definitely a bad day for Ragna. He thought that he could finally get his answers from the library regarding the true meaning of the Japanese letters 天/Ten, but ironically it was closed. Not only that, there was an angry mob out there that was about to kill an unarmed man. They could also hurt Ragna if he is not careful. Another fine mess Ragna had got himself into since he had set his foot in this chaotic city.

Ragna then spotted the librarian running outside in fear. Ragna ran after him and then restrained him: "WHERE ARE YOU GOING? YOU NEED TO OPEN THE LIBRARY NOW."

"HAS SANITY ABANDONED YOU SON! TURN AROUND AND WITNESS THE HORROR! YOU EXPECT ME OPEN THE LIBRARY AT SUCH DARK TIMES?" The librarian answered.

"I DON'T CARE! I NEED TO BE AT THE LIBRARY NOW!"

"UNRESTRAIN ME, FOOLISH BOY!" The librarian then shoved Ragna as he ran away. Ragna was about to chase the old fool when he heard a bloodcurdling scream of a little girl. It was Arzoo's and Babak's six-year-old daughter: "AHHHHHHH FATHER! PLEASE, SOMEONE OR ANYONE, SAVE MY FATHER!"

Ragna turned around and he saw that the crowd of two hundred people had already begun their street justice. They attacked downed Babak with heavy logs, hammers and steel pipes. Babak was screaming like a slaughtered animal. His feet and his arms moved frantically as a reflex response to each vicious blow from the mob. Babak's blood was flying everywhere and the members of the mob who were closest to the accused man (Babak) were covered most with Babak's blood.

So violent was the attack, even the beautiful face of Arzoo received her share of her husband's blood. She was no longer screaming as she was in a state of shock, but her six-year-old daughter was still frantically screaming on seeing her father being viciously executed by the crowd. This was an odd sight for sure.

But the mad crowd was not done yet. The kept on attacking the dead or at least unconscious and unmoving body of Babak. There was still blood coming out that carcass which both dumbfounded and disgusted Ragna. He couldn't look any further. He was about to throw up any time now.

But suddenly Ragna heard a familiar gruff voice: "Pain is all I can see...ere...I know fur shure and it was caused by misinterpretation of one's intention."

On hearing the said voice everyone attention was immediately shifted to that mysterious person. He was a white, cat, beastkin with two black tails. He wore a yellow hooded jacket and had an eye patch on his right eye. It was surely a bipedal beastkin. Ragna knew who he was. It was his spiritual teacher Hali the famous poet cum Darvish or aka as Jubei; One of The Six Heroes.

The priest who was leading the mob shouted: "RETURN TO YOUR ABODE BEASTMAN! THIS PLACE DOESN'T CONCERN YOUR KIND!"

"I'm pretty shure that it is my concern boyo. I see that an innocent person is almost condemned to death..."

"WHAT IN LORD'S NAME ARE YOU BLABBERING OLD MAN?" Said one of the mob members.

"What I'm saying is that Mr. Miyazaki's son is alive and well."

"You speak lies grimalkin. We know for certain that young Hayo was murdered and then fed to the unsuspecting, God-fearing Eaglers of this town by this harlot." The priest pointed his index finger downwards at the beautiful Arzoo who still in a state of shock after seeing her husband gruesomely murdered.

"Then under the spirit of Lady Themis, this woman should be punished for her crimes. Not poor Babak. She was the one who murdered little Hayo for her rice dish."

"We have spared this fragile woman from the sword of justice on compassionate grounds." The priest countered.

"You and I know full well that this execution was no substitute for compassion. Although, I do say young Arzoo is one fine woman."

"What are you implying Jubei?" The priest was clearly agitated now.

"Only my friends and my students are allowed to call me by that name. But for you and the others, I'm Hali, The Travelling Darvish. What I'm trying to imply is that all of you have executed an innocent person. Babak was innocent."

"HA..HA..HA..Control your tongue you Grimalkin..I'm the father of the Cadbury Cathedral...If so I wish. I could drag your body through the entire streets of Baghdad.." Preist started to breathe heavily.

"Oh, you could do that? What got you so agitated? The entire crowd must have wondered Molan (religious scholar cum priest), Eustace Kirby?

"HA..HA..HA..How did you know my name?" The priest was still breathing heavily.

"Lucky guess Molan Kirby! Ah, Mr. Miyazaki! Come forth, my friend. I have got good news for you. Your precious little son is alive and well."

"That's a lie." The priest replied.

"Is that so well learned Darvish?" Mr. Miyazaki asked hopefully as he came towards Hali.

"Mr. Miyazaka, what I'm about to do right now might seems like a miracle but it is actually a product of mundane hard work. Little Hayo say hello to your papa for me." Jubei said as he raised his jacket to reveal a shivering Hayo. The sight of still alive Hayo brought a sense of shock to the public.

Mr. Miyazaki immediately hugged his child: "Son are you ok? Are you hurt?" Hayo immediately started to cry: "Father I was so scared. I promise father! I would never play with other kids outside our home again. Father just promise me. That you would never abandon me."

Mr. Miyazaki hugged his son tightly as he took him in his arms: "I would never abandon you my son, promise. Thank you, Darvish for your kindness. I'm eternally grateful to you." With that, Mr. Miyazaki went on his way home.

"But priest we killed an innocent man?" Said one of the mob members. The priest couldn't answer their questions as he felt that Hali had destroyed his reputation within few minutes.

The priest then started to clap: " _CLAP! CLAP! CLAP!_...Well done Hali! Well done! You might have fooled the entire crowd with your grand performance but you didn't fool me. You are the true perpetrator behind little Hayo kidnapping. We know the truth."

"Huh, the truth? Should I be franker then? I found little Hayo under the basement of Cadbury Cathedral where you regularly hold your services ."

"LIES! LIES! LIES! GRIMALKIN! YOU WERE THE ONE WHO KIDNAPPED LITTLE HAYO. JUST SO TO SPREAD MISCHIEF IN THIS LAND! THE BLOOD OF POOR BABAK LIES IS IN YOUR DIRTY PAWS!"

"Am I being accused of almost murder of poor Babak? I accused you of the almost murder of Babak the farmer. You Molan (religious scholar cum priest) Kirby had set your lustful eyes on Babak's woman, Arzooo. While you couldn't attain her by legitimate means, you sought a more unsavory path of accusing the poor fellow of murdering of little Hayo. Which would eventually result in his almost death at the hands of the mob. After that, his woman would be yours for the taking."

"I'm happily married to my wife for FORTY YEARS! HOW COULD YOU ACCUSE ME OF SUCH VILE THINGS? I EVEN HAVE GRANDCHILDREN! THIS HAS GONE LONG ENOUGH OFFICERS! ARREST HIM FOR SPREADING SLANDERS AGAINST ME! ARREST THAT BEASTKIN!"

"Leave now while you still can Molan Kirby. If you insist on accusing me of any more of unsavory things, I wouldn't mind exposing more of your dirty little secrets in return."

"HA..HA..You haven't se...en the...last of...me...Darvish...Mark my words...I...willl get you someday...This isn't the end..." With that, the priest known as Eustace Kirby went away.

Finally, Arzoo came to her senses and started to cry: " Waaaaaah! But Darvish? This doesn't solve anything. My husband was cruelly murdered! No amount of justice could bring him back...Waaaahhhh...!"

Jubei patted the young woman head: "My beautiful child. Weren't paying attention to anything I said at all? Your husband was almost condemned to death. Let me paraphrase that. You husband is not dead but is on the verge of it."

Arzoo immediately grabbed Hali's hand: "Please kind sir bring him back from the dead if you have to...Waahhhh! I beg of you sir waaaaahhh!"

"My child! I don't practice the forbidden and the evil art of necromancy! I am incapable of giving life to the dead. But I can...heal his wounds."

Out of nowhere Babak suddenly stands up as if he was alive. He was perfectly alright; there were no wounds or gashes on his body. The only thing that pointed out to his recent execution by the mob was his bloodstained shirt. His wife and his daughter immediately ran towards him: "Honey...Is that really you?"

"It's me...I'm all right...I..t's a...mira...cle.." The wife, the daughter and the husband Babak embraced each other tightly.

"What's going on? Did you bring him back from the dead?" Asked one of the mob members.

"Only Lord Jesus is capable of such deed. I'm rather a healer." Hali smiled.

 **One hour later**

Hali was talking with Mr. Miyazaki: "Some issues need to settled here, Mr. Miyazaki. Since you were indirectly responsible for the wrongdoings that happened to Babak the farmer. It would only be logical that you would pay a sum of Twenty Five gold coins as a compensation for the trouble that was faced by Babak's family."

Mr. Miyazaki nodded: "That is a reasonable demand well-learned Darvish! I will honour our agreement."

Hali then continued: "Good! As for others. Since most of you have torched your neighbours' home, it would be a good start to ask all of you fine people to put out the fire from the victims' houses and contribute your financial share in the rebuilding of their homes." The mob all agreed to Hali arrangements.

Hali then began his sermon to the crowd: "Belonging to a different creed, having not the same opinions as yours is not a Kanker that needs to be severed. Differences need to be appreciated and respected." Jubei then pulls out a rose, a sunflower and a jasmine flower from the garden: "Some of you prefer roses, some of you are fascinated with the beauty of this sunflower and others like me can't resist the sweet smell of jasmine." As Jubei inhaled the fragrance of jasmine flower: "Why are all of these flowers so beautiful you say? Because they're all so different. Because they are all so unique."

"A bee that stings provides us with honey. A shark that attacks humans, protect the ecosystem from jellyfish. Nothing that exists in this world is beyond purpose. Every face, every race, every creature, every feature, every opinion, every nationality and every creed. Each and everything in this world has a grand role to play in this universe. We all contribute to the collective beauty of Mother Nature. By hating on each other uniqueness we destroy that very fabric of nature. So let us respect and appreciate each other differences. Let us celebrate each other uniqueness! Let us all become one!"

When Hali completed his speech. The entire crowd erupted into a cheer. Ragna knew that his teacher Hali or better known as Jubei (One of the Six Legendary Heroes) was quite charismatic. Wherever he goes, he would always attract new followers to his Sufi (Mystic) order.

Ragna recalled that he used to be a lost soul just like the rest of them. He used to hate Cathlers at some point in his life. As he was raised in an Eagler family after all. But when the constant stream of gruesome violence that erupted between Cathlers and Eaglers claimed lives on both sides. Ragna began to reconsider his theological philosophy. That's when he decided to seek Jubei at his shrine in Samarkand, Uzbekistan for answers. He wanted to find a solution that would unite both of the creeds together under the banner of the great religion Glosticism. Which used to be one when creedal issues divided it (Glosticism).

The minute he set foot on Hali's (Jubei's) shrine the minute all of his life's question began to unravel for themselves. With every step, he made towards Jubei new answers began to appear in his mind. When he finally reached Jubei he was fully content. Ragna was then convinced that Jubei is the final solution to end creedal violence. Just like he managed to stop one today.

"That was a nice speech right there Master Jubei."

Hali turned around and spotted his old student: "Rawgnnnaaa! Nobody calls me by that name besides you...Came to say Salaam to this old beast?"

Ragna then bowed: "Master Jubei...I'm in a deep mess...Can you listen to my problems? I don't have anyone else talk to..."

"Rawgnaaa! My ears are always open for you. Let it rip."

 **Half An Hour Later At Chai Khana (Cafe)**

Both Ragna and Hali were seated on a chair with teas served on their table.

"So let me get this straight." As Hali sipped his tea: " _Slurp!_...Your father Joeseph and Jin have gone missing for a few weeks now. You tried to file a police report at the Kazi office but you were unsuccessful at that. Plus you have no clue where Andrew Kisaragi is in the first place. Let me ask you, son. Did you try asking others for help?

"I did Master Jubei. I asked Edgar Vermillion, but he was simply not willing to cooperate...I don't even know whether he has any credible knowledge on my family disappearances...or not." Ragna then hands over a piece of paper to Hali containing the word 天/Ten: "The only clue I got so far is this strange Calligraphy that I got from his daughter..."

Hali took the paper from Ragna: "Hmmmm...You mean Noel?" Ragna silently nodded.

"Let me see...Hmmmmmmm...Ten...Interesting, it's definitely Japanese...Sorry, sonny, this old beast is as badly learned on this matter as you are. But I can definitely help if you would like?"

"Oh really Master Jubei..?...Thank You...thank you so much...I'm just curious...How could you help me if you don't even know what this calligraphy means in the first place..."

"Don't be simple sonny! All I'm capable of performing is this deed!" Jubei then raises the piece of paper containing the letter 天/Ten and immediately releases it into the air, thereby flying far, far away.

"FACKKKKKK! WHAT KIND OF HELP IS THAT OLDMAN...? I GOT THAT REPRODUCED FROM A JAPANESE CALLIGRAPHER, GOD DAM IT! IT'S BOTH EXPENSIVE AND DIFFICULT TO FIND THOSE DAM JAPANESE CALLIGRAPHERS IN BAGHDAD..." Ragna panicked.

"Was that paper valuable?"

"OBVIOUSLY OYAJI! IT COST ME NINE FACKING GOLD COINS!"

"Hehehe...If something important in life, then you need to chase after it."

"GREAT FACKING ADVICE OLD MAN!" Ragna screamed as he began to chase after the flying paper.

"Hehehehe...Atta boy." Jubei smiled once he was alone.

The piece of paper containing the word 天 was flying away at great speed. Ragna was having a hard time at keeping pace with it. Suddenly the piece of paper elevated to such great heights that it forced Ragna to use his parkour skills to jump on the roof of a house. Ragna jumped from one roof to the another just to chase after that dam piece of paper. He was already running on empty.

Ragna knew he had to take a risk in order to reclaim that piece of paper again. So he made a huge ninja-like-leap and finally caught the paper in mid-air: "YEAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" Ragna screamed in delight. But his victory was shortlived as he realized that he was still mid-air and he could fall back to earth in quite a painful manner: "FACCCCCCCCCCCCCCK!" Ragna screamed in fear of the impending doom.

But Ragna fall was broken by a pottery stall. After the dust had settled, Ragna head was covered by a giant pottery: "MUFFFFFFFF...UMMMMMMMM..." Ragna screamed as he struggled to remove the ridiculously huge pottery from his head. He finally manages to remove that dam ceramic utensil from his head.

"DAM YOUUUU JUBEIIIIIIII!" Ragna screamed. He then spotted a tiny, brown-furred monkey who wearing a sleeveless maroon jacket and a matching fez hat. Ragna immediately recognized who that tiny monkey was: "Abu is that you?" Ragna gasped. It was indeed Abu; the pet monkey of Ragna's childhood friend Aladdin. If Abu was in Baghdad, so was Aladdin. Abu goes wherever Aladdin goes.

The tiny monkey still looked at Ragna curiously, which made him chuckle nervously: "Haahahaha...It's me, Abu...Rags...Your maste...erm...I mean your partner friend."

Out of nowhere, Abu slapped Ragna: "OUCH! THAT HURT ABU!" Abu then slapped Ragna again: "OUCH! WHAT'S WRONG WITH YOU DAM IT?" Abu slapped Ragna third time: "OUCH! Oh! You're gonna play that game? I can play that game even better!" Ragna finally slapped the little monkey in the face: "EEK..EEK..EEK.." The tiny monkey screeched in anger as it responded to slap Ragna in the face even more ferociously.

"Take this monkey brain!" Ragna tried to slap Abu; but the tiny, brown monkey did something unexpected. Abu thanks to his quick, primate reflex, immediately bit the slapping hand of Ragna before it contact with his (Abu's) face: "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH! YOU BIT ME! YOU DAM MONKEY! AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Ragna screamed in pain.

"DAM IT! LET GO OF MY HAND! AAAAHHHHHHHHH!" Ragna began to punch the tiny monkey constantly. Abu was persistent and kept on biting Ragna's fingers. With one last yet powerful blow from Ragna, Abu was forced to leave our hero fingers alone and thankfully intact.

"HAVE YOU GONE INSANE ABU?" Insane was a word that was alien to Abu. As the little monkey ferociously screamed like a mad animal: EEEEKKKK...EKKKKKKK...EKKKKKK..." He suddenly attacked Ragna on his face: "AAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH! ABUUUUUUUUU! NOT THE FACE! ANYTHING BUT THE FACE!"

Abu finally listened to Ragna's pleas for sparing his beautiful face and but the little monkey went for something far more sinister and relatively more ugly in exchange: "NO..NO..NO..NO..Don't try to gouge my eyes OUTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT!" Ragna screamed in pain when the monkey did exactly what he feared the most.

"ABUUUUU! YOU LITTLE SITTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTTT!" Ragna screamed in pain as he crashed into another pottery stall.

Ragna immediately heard a male scream after the aforementioned crash. He wouldn't blame that guy for screaming like a little girl, as that crash was as epic as that of Wall Street Crash. He couldn't see him, as luck would have it, his head was again covered by another ridiculously large pottery. If that guy was that much scared after that pottery stall crash. Wait till he sees Ragna new makeover courtesy of Abu.

Ragna finally manages to remove the large pottery from his head. Abu immediately jumps on the roof of one of the houses in the neighbourhood. He concluded that it wasn't worth the effort to chase after the little vermin. He immediately tried to locate the male person who had screamed just now.

Ragna was easily able to find him. That person was wearing a green, hooded cloak. On the backside of his cloak was a familiar sign 天: "Ten?" Ragna read it out loud. It was exactly the same Japanese letter that was supposedly calligraphed by Jin. Ragna even rechecked the paper in his hands to confirm it. Both of the signs were one and the same.

Jubei's crazy antics actually worked and it led him to this man who wore a green, hooded cloak with the same Japanese letter 天 (Ten) on his backside. This was what he was looking for all along. No matter how deep the problem is, Jubei would always solve it in the most mysterious of ways.

Sure, Ragna was forced to do a ridiculous task of chasing a piece of paper, while falling down from great heights, destroying two pottery stalls in a single day and to put a cherry on top, getting viciously attacked by Aladdin's pet monkey Abu. But Ragna was ultimately grateful towards Jubei for his mystical yet stupid ways for solving mysteries.

"Dhoes...BREAD..EYES...Vamiraisin...?" Ragna ears were still ringing now as he smashed his head on various potteries, after being attacked by yours truly Abu. That green cloaked guy, said a lot of things. The only things that Ragna could actually make out were "Bread", "Eyes" and "Vampiraisin". None of those words made any sense except for one. Ragna had a hunch that Vampiraisin actually means Vamirherzen, his family name. How did this green-cloaked dude know Ragna's family name in the first place? They've never met before. What does even "BREAD", "Dhoes" and "Eyes" meant in the first place?

When Ragna got up the green-cloaked man immediately ran away: "WAIIIIT!"

Ragna started to chase after this suspicious individual. That green-cloaked guy was pretty quick but he also used some distraction tactics like throwing random crates, boxes or bird cages-whatever he could get his hands on-in order to slow down Ragna. However, those tactics didn't work as Ragna was an expert parkour artist being trained by some of the best monks of Savafif order.

"BUDDY YOU CAN RUN! BUT YOU CAN'T HIDE!"

The green-cloaked guy then pleaded for help from a group of chaukidars (night watchman/security guard of the neighborhood) nearby: "Vampirherzen! Stop him!" Yup, Ragna was now dead sure that it was Vampirherzen, not Vampiraisn; as much delicious as the latter name sounds. This suspicious individual clearly knew what his family name was. He also had that sign 天 (Ten) on the backside of his cloak. Ragna would make sure that this man will talk after he gets his hands on him.

"Fear not. We'll handle him." One of the chaukidars (security guard) assured him. The green-cloaked man nodded and then he ran away.

"Where are you headed off to son?" One of the chaukidars asked.

"You're in my way oyaji. Get out." Ragna hissed.

All of the chaukidars started to laugh at Ragna's demand: "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA..." Ragna then realized there were at least fourteen chaukidars who were coming after him now. He couldn't take on all of them at once. To make matters worse, he was already on the verge of losing that green-cloaked dude.

One of the chaukidars tried to right punch Ragna in the face. But he responded by ducking it and immediately grabbed hold of chaukidar's right arm. Ragna then finished him off with three kicks on his kidney and threw him far away.

The second chaukidar charged at Ragna. He responded by spearing (tackling) the fat chaukidar Roman Regins style and both of them crashed onto the third pottery stall. Ragna immediately proceeded to punch the downed chaukidar in a vicious manner. However, his constant stream of punches was immediately stopped by a third chaukidar who grabbed Ragna from behind.

Ranga was completely restrained by the third chaukidar. The fourth chaukidar came forth and immediately punched Ragna on his face and on his guts: "AAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH!" Ragna screamed in pain. It had hurt a lot. Those beefy chaukidars really packed a punch.

Ragna then gave a powerful flying kick on the nose of the fourth chaukidar thereby crashing him (fourth chaukidar) onto the fourth pottery stall. Thank God! The proprietors of those pottery stalls were away for evening prayers. If they had been here, they would've definitely hounded Ragna's as just as these chaukidars were doing quite perfectly.

Ragna was still not free. He was still being restrained by the third chaukidar and there was a danger that one of his colleagues would show up anytime now and deliver a knockout blow to Ragna while he is at it. Ragna was pretty sure he wouldn't get up after the ten count. So he (Ragna) made a powerful reverse jump that made both Ragna and the third chaukidar crashed onto the fifth (& hopefully last) pottery stall.

Dam it! It's official now. Ragna was now the scourge of the pottery kind everywhere. Beware! This SS-class criminal has attempted a mass pottery-cide in a single day. Pottery Enemy Number One. Ragna The Bloodedge. Remeber the name of ceramics products greatest enemy.

Ragna then got up and so did the third chaukidar. So he smashed the third chaukidar head with a pottery jar that he found nearby. Thereby knocking the fatso out in a single blow. Another chaukidar tried to attack Ragna but he responded by smashing his head with another pottery jar and again knocking him out.

More and more chaukidars (Watchmen) were ominously coming towards Ragna. Sure, pottery jars were effective weapons and all, but Ragna couldn't realistically expect to take on all of them at once. Plus, time was not on his side, as that green-cloaked man was getting farther and farther from Ragna's reach. He had to do something and fast.

Ragna then spotted a firewalker practicing his firewalking skills on hot coals, before his upcoming performance at the bazaar. Just near the firewalker, was a large stack of three hundred or so crates. This gave Ragna a wicked idea. Maybe he could use that jumping technique that his friend Aladdin taught him long ago.

When the hordes of chaukidars came at a suitable distance, Ragna decided to run and then leaped over the bed of hot embers using the head of the firewalker as a launching pad and jumped himself to safety. While all of the foolish chaukidars badly burned their feet on the bed of fiery, hot coals while chasing after Ragna: "OOOH! AHHH! OHHH! AAHHH! OOHH ! AHHHH!" As they screamed in pain. Just like Aladdin did that to those harebrained guards of Agrabah when he was still a street rat.

Ragna climbed on the top of three hundred crates stack. Then, he cut down all the ropes with his knife that was holding all of those crates together. And finally, he pushed down the top half and the middle half of the stack that made rest of crates fall down in a domino effect.

By the time the horde of chaukidars arrived, they were assaulted by the large sets of crates falling on top of them. When the ensuing chaos settled, most of the chaukidars were buried six feet deep under the huge piles of broken crates. With that, Ragna ran after the mysterious, green caper. If he ran fast enough he could still catch his man on time.

So Ragna ran off at his maximum speed. After few minutes of running or so, he finally manages to locate the still running green caper. It seems as if he wasn't expecting the chaukidars to holdoff Ragna for much longer. Good for him. Never underestimate Ragna, The Scion of Vampirherzen family. The green-cloaked man then hurriedly enters a posh, five-storied building. Ragna could see that this building was constructed using expensive materials. On the top of that building, was a particular Gear Wheel symbol of a golden colour.

When Ragna tried to enter that building he was pushed violently on his as by one of the guards: "Rights of admission are reserved to members only." He rudely said.

"Fack you man! Why did you have to push me so hard? Besides I'm a member."

"You're not fooling anyone. Begone!"

"So how do I become a member then?"

"Scram street rat! Anymore question from you, me and my brothers wouldn't hesitate to use our fists against you." Replied one of the guards rudely. Ragna just shook his head in disbelief.

He then scanned his surroundings. He noted that this particular building was heavily guarded. Which actually dumbfounded Ragna. If this place was indeed a socializing club, why was this building as heavily guarded as if it was a fort? It made no facking sense. Who were these guards even trying to protect in the first place? The ambassador? The duke? Or even the king perhaps?

"Try as you might. You won't be able to get inside this building through unscrupulous means. As you've already observed that it is heavily guarded. But remember this well, young warrior. Your answers lie in the archives room of this building on the third floor." Said a mysterious hooded individual, who was wearing a black cloak.

"Who the fack are you?"

"I'm just a well-wisher young warrior. And so, I bid you farewell." After that, he turned around and started to walk towards the darkness of the streets. On the backside of his black cloak was a very familiar Japanese symbol 字: "Ji" Ragna read it out aloud. Ragna was dam sure that it was very much the same Japanese symbol that he had seen on that tiny yellow badge that was being worn by that Indian, beastkin belly dancer Makoto Nanaya. Were these two people connected somehow? Ragna wanted to confirm that.

"HEY WAIT?" Ragna screamed as he chased after the mysterious individual. When Ragna came out of the darkness of the streets and into the area which was lit by the fire torches; that mysterious, black-cloaked individual was nowhere to be found. It was as if he had disappeared into thin air.

"WHAT THE HEL IS GOING ON HERE?" Ragna hissed. Things are now getting more and more interesting for him. Ragna didn't really know whether this mysterious, black-cloaked individual was his friend or his foe.

* * *

 **I'll admit this chapter was quite dark. So, for this reason, I tried to balance the serious tone of this chapter with lots of humour. The great thing about this fanfic is that I've got most of the story figured out; even the ending...erm...somewhat. So no more writer's block for me woohooo! This is Howlin Blood speaking over and out.**


	4. Ch 3: Ragna & The Mysterious Fraternity

**Disclaimer: I do not own Blazblue, A Clockwork Orange, and Disney's Aladdin. All rights belong to their respective owners.**

 **I bet ya all are pretty excited after reading the disclaimer. Am I right? Am I right? ;)**  
 **Disney's Aladdin and A Clockwork Orange. How is it possible to combine these two Intellectual Properties together under the same Umbrella Ella of Blazblue. Well you'll have to read and find out for yourself.**

* * *

 _~Previously on Blazblue~_

 _"Try as you might. You won't be able to get inside this building through unscrupulous means. As you've already observed that it (building) is heavily guarded. But remember this well, young warrior. Your answers lie in the archives room of this building on the third floor." Said a mysterious hooded individual, who was wearing a black cloak._

 _"Who the fack are you?"_

 _"I'm just a well-wisher young warrior. And so, I bid you farewell." After that, he turned around and started to walk towards the darkness of the streets. On the backside of his black cloak was a very familiar Japanese symbol 字: "Ji" Ragna read it out aloud. Ragna was dam sure that it was very much the same Japanese symbol that he had seen on that tiny yellow badge that was being worn by that Indian, beastkin belly dancer Makoto Nanaya. Were these two people connected somehow? Ragna wanted to confirm that._

 _"HEY WAIT?" Ragna screamed as he chased after the mysterious individual. When Ragna came out of the darkness of the streets and into the area which was lit by the fire torches; that mysterious, black-cloaked individual was nowhere to be found. It was as if he had disappeared into thin air._

 _"WHAT THE HEL IS GOING ON HERE?" Ragna hissed. Things are now getting more and more interesting for him. Ragna didn't really know whether this mysterious, black-cloaked individual was his friend or his foe._

* * *

 **Two Days Later**

Ragna decided that he needed to take a walk in the busy marketplace of Baghdad. He preferred his walk on crowded streets rather than deserted ones. As Ragna was not a patient philosopher who sought answers in tranquility. He was a hothead, who sought quick and easy answers. But his current conundrum doesn't involve quick, easy answers that he instinctually craved so much. Although he partially found out more about the mysterious Japanese symbol 天 (Ten) as it led him to an anonymous person who wore a hooded, green cloak that bore the same symbol 天 (Ten) on the backside of his cloak.

But still, he couldn't get any definite answers how this mysterious symbol (天) was actually connected with his brother and his father disappearances. As Ragna's rotten luck would have it, that green-cloaked individual managed to evade Ragna when he took refuge under a certain building that had Gear Wheel symbol on its top. And to make matters worse that certain building was under heavy surveillance twenty-four seven. Making it nigh impossible for Ragna to sneak inside that building without alerting the guards.

And that's not all folks. This mystery gets even more mysterious as Ragna meets another, (black) cloaked gentleman, who told him that he could get all of his answers from the "third floor" of the same building on the "archives room."

What kind of answers would Ragna get from the archives room is anyone's guess? As Ragna had told only a select few people about his fact-finding mission regarding Jin's and Joeseph's disappearances. So he doubted that the black cloaked man actually knew what Ragna motives were in the first place. The whole idea stank, but Ragna had no choice but to look for answers in the archives room of the said building.

But that was in no way an easy task either. How was he suppose to get inside the archives room if he cannot enter that dam building with that much security? He needed at least three or four platoons of trained armed men to penetrate that fortress.

Ragna sighed to himself as he had no choice but to look for answers at the local library nearby. Ragna recalled that particular building had a Golden Gear Wheel Symbol on its top. Now that would be a good starting point to look for answers.

 **Al-Andalus Library**

Al-Andalus was a local library that wasn't from the caravanserai (inn) where Ragna was currently staying. It wasn't as big or even as significant as the Library of Alexandria was. What it had were sufficient volumes of books which he hoped would ultimately aid in his research.

Ragna began collecting books on varied subjects like "symbols" and "recreational organizations" etc with the aim of finding credible information on the Golden Gear Wheel insignia that he saw on that building not so long ago.

After reading numerous books and wasting countless hours, Ragna was frustrated that he couldn't find anything that was relevant to his quest. The only information he got on that Golden Gear Wheel symbol so far was that it was an ancient sigil of an extinct cult. Sigil was some sort of logo or symbol that was used in occult practices.

Using sigils and magic, in general, were considered heresy as per Glosticism (the official religion of NOL). This only dumbfounded Ragna. What's, even more, he found this information on the Golden Gear sigil from a book called "Grimorium Verum" which was supposedly authored by Suleimaniu The Great. Grimorium Verum is considered one of the most important books on magic for witches and warlocks alike.

Suleimaniu the Great was greatly revered by Glosticism as one of the great prophets. Even Jubei's Sufi (mystic) order, Savafif held the ancient prophet in great esteem. A holy man like Suleimaniu was supposedly the author of such dark book. This doesn't make much sense. It would make even lesser sense if he didn't research more on this subject any further. So he started to read Grimorium Verum again.

 _"Gear Wheel sigil represents the ancient Jerichoan deity Nu'ak. Nu'ak was an all-powerful deity but his power greatly waned when the first of men rebelled against him and ultimately expelling him (Nu'ak) from the "Dilmun" or paradise. The whole rebellion started after Nu'ak debarred men from eating the forbidden fruit Aubade Pome. Aubade Pome aka "Heart of the Sun" was a mythical fruit that had the power to bring back the dead. Aubade Pome is considered by as the precursor of the legendary Philosopher's Stone._

 _As soon as the Great Deity Nu'ak was expelled, Dilmun downfall began. Overnight Dilmun deteriorated from heaven to abyss. In fact, the current state of the earth is actually the deteriorated and decrepit version of Dilmun or Paradise. And also the entire humanity was condemned with Massa Damnata or Original Sin after their original rebellion against Nu'ak._

 _Abrahamic religions including Glosticism, on the contrary, believe that the God or more specifically Logos was the one who expelled men from the Gardens of Eden which is the equivalent of Dilmun in the Jerichoan religion._

 _And it should be noted that the Chief God of Jerichoan Religion, Nu'ak wasn't even as omnipotent as his Glostian counterpart Logos was. Nu'ak needed his followers to pray, meditate and follow other religious customs in order to strengthen the ancient deity and ultimately end his exile with the help of Ark of Divine Flames (an ark that could only be created from humanity good deeds and dedication to Nu'ak). When that day comes the Great Deity would nullify the burden of "Massa Damnata" or Orginal Sin from the shoulders of humanity._

 _In contrast Logos (God of Glosticism) didn't require the prayers and the meditations of his followers as he was already omnipotent. All those prayers and good deeds as per Abrahamic religions were for humanity own benefits."_

Ragna then saw the visual representation of Nu'ak Star sigil in the book. He immediately compares it (Nu'ak sigil) with his hand drawing of Golden Gear Wheel symbol that he saw on that heavily guarded building.

The similarities between these two symbols were mindboggling, to say the least. Whereas the "Golden Gear Wheel" symbol had nine cogs, the Nu'ak sigil similarly had nine triangles on its Golden Star. And both of them were an anomaly in terms of geometry.

One cannot simply make a workable gear wheel without following the principles of a prime number. For a perfect gear wheel, it needs to have five cogs, seven cogs, eleven cogs or twenty-three cogs etc all of which are examples of prime numbers. As long, it has a prime number the gear wheel would work.

The gear wheel wouldn't be functional if its number of cogs are based on composite numbers like six, eight or nine cogs etc. The designer of the gear wheel would be making a grave mistake if put he puts nine cogs on his gear wheel.

Such a mistake cannot be an accident. There is definitely some sort of connection between the Nu'ak Golden Star sigil and the "Golden Gear Wheel" symbol that Ragna saw on that building not so long ago. Maybe both of these symbols were one and the same.

But all of these myths and stories were not really answering any of Ragna questions. He needed to get relevant information on that heavily guarded building. He could possibly get more information on that building with the help of a map. Ragna recalled that he was at Zaytoun Street when he was forced to fight against a group of beefy chaukidars (watchman) at that point of time.

So he procured a map and then he fixed his index finger on the Zaytoun Street: "Okay! There it is...Zaytoun Street..." Ragna remembered that after burying those chaukidars under a huge pile of crates, he resumed his chase after the green-cloaked individual. Ragna estimated that he ran approximately 2.8 kilometers before he arrived at that heavily guarded building where he saw that Golden Gear Wheel symbol.

"So it had to be rightttttt hereeee." Ragna soliloquy. This was it. He had actually found the street where that building was located at. It was: "Haifa street... Hmmmm what's that?" Ranga actually found something on the map that actually caught him by surprise: "What the fack? Why weren't there any bazars or corner shops on Haifa Street?"

This new discovery literally dumfounded Ragna. Baghdad never had a concept of uptown and downtown. This city was a disorganized hel hole. Residential areas freely mixed with the commercial areas. But this part of Baghdad or more specifically Haifa Street was an anomaly in the entirety of NOL Empire. There were no shops, cafes or dhabba (Diner) located there at Haifa Street. It only had Minor Kazi office (police station), governmental residences and farmhouses belonging to powerful tycoons.

If this strange revelation caught Ragna off guard, then the next one would surely give him a powerful sucker punch: "What?" Ragna brows began to sweat: "Where the hel is that dam building?" He couldn't find that heavily guarded building anywhere on this map. In its place was a blank spot where that building was supposedly located at.

Ragna then checked the publication date of the map. It was twenty years old: "It would be a good idea if I try to locate that dam building using recent maps." Ragna mused to himself. He then procured a map that was at least five years old. He then tried to locate that specific building again on Haifa street: "What?" Ragna almost choked himself. He again couldn't find that dam building on this map either. Of course, there was a possibility that this specific building was only constructed last year.

So this time around, Ragna procured a map that was published this year and then he tried to locate that building again: "This doesn't make any facking sense?" That building was nowhere to be found. This was quite a ridiculous discovery. He was sure that he had seen that dam place with his own set of eyes. He even got shoved on his as when he tried to enter it. And his as still hurts up to this day.

In desperation, Ragna took out all of the maps from a tall circular container. Newer maps or older maps; it didn't really matter to him as he was desperate for answers. He tried to locate that dam building from three years old map to six years old map from seven years old map to thirteen years old map and eventually thirty-six years old map...But he couldn't find that dam place anywhere: "DAM ITTTTTT!" As Ragna hammered both of his fists on the table.

"Observe silence young man. This is a library for God sake." Said a bespectacled, old librarian who was probably around sixty-three years old. He had a kind face and he didn't sport any beard. He was definitely a foreigner in Ragna's book.

"Oh sorry." Ragna apologized. Since he (Ragna) had no lead to go on, he realized that he might as well get help from the old librarian while he's at it: "Kind sir! Could you offer me some assistance? It's a matter of utmost importance."

"Certainly my boy. Certainly! What is it do you seek from old Miguel." Ragna immediately deduced that this old librarian was Portuguese.

Ragna then handed Miguel the Golden Gear wheel symbol that he managed to draw on a piece of paper: "Do you know what that is?"

"Intriguing! This is certainly not something that I expected to see again when I emigrated to Baghdad." Miguel mused.

"Do you know what this symbol represents sir?"

"Concentrate on the illustration young one." As Miguel points his index finger on a specific part of the drawing: "There are nine cogs on this on this gear wheel. My educated guess would entail that this gear wheel symbol must have been of golden colour. Is that correct young man?"

"That is correct."

"Leviores."

"Excuse me?"

"Leviores young one. Seekers of Light as they would like to call themselves." Miguel then taps his index finger on the drawing: "I must compliment you on your skillful hands' young man, as this an accurate depiction of the hidden insignia of Leviores Brotherhood."

"Seeker of light? Hidden insignia? What do you mean by all of that?"

"It seems that by answering your initial queries. Your mind is overwhelmed with even more questions."

"Obviously."

"Very well young one. Leviores Brotherhood or Seeker of Light is an organization that assembles some of the most eminent men and women out there. Influential tycoons, ancient nobility, young princes and prominent government officials are all members of this brotherhood. An organization, whose exterior goals are that of humanitarian services and advancing the spirit of brotherhood around the world or so as they say. But you and I know full well there is more to the moral of the story than meets the eye."

"None of this information is really helping me in anyway."

"Sad! My help is restricted on my limited knowledge on this organization. If you're thirsty for more information on this fraternal organization, I recommend that you read this book." Old Miguel then hands over Ragna a brown book from the shelf: "With this, young man, I hope that most of your questions will satisfactory be answered." With that Miguel started to walk towards his desk.

"Wait!"

"What is it young one?" Miguel turned his head.

"I can't find any branches of Leviores brotherhood on the maps of Baghdad. Do you know why that is?"

"Have you considered the mundane fact that there aren't any branches of Leviores brotherhood in Baghdad in the first place?"

"What do you mean? I seen one myself."

"Surely you jest young one. These maps are being published by the government of Baghdad themselves. It would be very unlikely if they would have made such a critical error. I'm much needed at my desk right now. If there is any more questions it would be wise that you ask me forthwith."

"No, I'm cool. Thanks, Miguel."

"You're welcome young one." With that Miguel went back to his desk. Ragna could not believe what he had just heard. He was sure that he had been to one of the branches of Leviores Brotherhood. He had even saw that distinct Golden Gear Wheel symbol of the brotherhood on that building. But Miguel insisted that there were no such branches of Leviores Brotherhood in Baghdad. What was going on?

Maybe it could be possible that the building where Ragna had seen the Gear Wheel symbol might have belonged to a different fraternal organization altogether. It could possible that there were other fraternal organizations out there that were using the same symbol as that of Leviores Brotherhood.

Ranga then started to the read brown book given to him by Miguel. It was titled as _"Encyclopedia of Fraternal Organizations Around The World."_ Ragna searched for Leviores Brotherhood on the table of contents section. It was located on page 54. He quickly turned to page 54 and started to read about the mysterious brotherhood.

 _"For more than 270 years, Leviores members have been addressing challenges around the world. Grassroots at the core, Leviores links 1.2 million members to form an organization of international scope. It started with the vision of one man_ _—_ _Ilya Rasputin. The Siberian mystic formed the Leviores Brotherhood in Ingolstadt, Kingdom of Bavaria. So people with diverse backgrounds could exchange ideas, form meaningful, lifelong friendships, and give back to their communities."_

Ragna then swiped to next page as he continued his readings on the Leviores Brotherhood: _"Membership is not available for all people. Rather, one should wait for the club's invitation for joining, according to the principle of selection. Classification is based on the main profession. There are 77 professions. Workers are deprived of the club's membership, and only those who occupy high positions are chosen. Leviores Brotherhood tries to have a balanced age level among the members and nourish the organization with new blood by attracting young members."_

 **Marketplace of Baghdad**

Ragna research at the library had proven to be quite fruitless. He couldn't get any reliable information that would help him in his quest. He only got superficial information on Leviores Brotherhood and some bedtime mythology on the Paganistic Cult of Nu'ak.

Ragna intended to head back to the building where he saw that golden Gear Wheel symbol in the first place. He wanted to confirm whether that building belonged to the Leviores Brotherhood or to a different organization altogether. Out of nowhere, he heard a sound of a very familiar animal or more specifically, a monkey: "Ooowhh...ommmhhh..."

It was a tiny, brown monkey who wore a sleeveless maroon jacket and a matching fez hat. Ranga knew who that vermin was: "ABU?"

Abu, the pet monkey of Aladdin, had a mischievous countenance on his face. Ragna knew that it was a lot better than that aggressive behaviour the tiny monkey displayed last time around. Frankly, Ragna wanted to forget that whole episode ever happened. How humiliating was it for Ragna if anyone found out that he got his as handed to him on a platter by a tiny monkey.

"Ooowhh...Owhhh...owwwhhh..." Abu cooed. Clearly trying to get Ragna's attention.

"Not now Abu. You should be thankful that I'm not in the mood of kicking your as."

"Ooowwh woooh oonnnhhh..."

"Shoo! Shoo! Get lost! You little monster!" As Ragna unsuccessfully, attempted to scare off Abu. The little monkey responded by throwing an apple on Ragna's face.

"Yeah, real mature Abu. Real mature"

The little monkey then tried to mock Ragna by imitating his walking style in a funny manner.

"Not gonna work Abu. You'll have to do better than that."

"Oooowwwwwhhhhhh Wuhhhhhhh (Oh Really)?" Abu sported a devious grin on his face. As he did something quite middle-eastern. Abu pointed his left index finger to his right hand while pursuing all of his right fingers together. This was an authentic "five fathers" gesture. Five fingers on right hand representing five fathers. A single left index finger representing Ragna's mother. The "five fathers" gesture simply meant that Ragna's mother was a: "Did you...just call my mama a...a...a...a...WHOREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE?" As his face became beet red with anger.

"I'M GONNA KILL YOU! YOU LITTLE SIIIIIIIIIIIIIIT!" As Ragna began to chase after the obscene, disrespectful monkey. Just as it looked like Ragna was about to catch him; the little monkey jumped so high that he could have sworn that Abu flew into the sky like a bird. Since Ragna was using his maximum speed as he was chasing after the little vermin, he couldn't have stopped himself when he realized that he was about to his hit his head first on a banana tree: "AAAAAHHHHHHH...AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH..." As Ragna screamed in fear.

 _"CRASH!"_

"AHHHHHH! MY HEAD!" Ragna groaned in pain, after accidentally headbutting a banana tree.

Suddenly he felt tremors from the banana tree as he knew that his troubles were far from over. As wave upon wave of bananas were bombarding Ragna at regular intervals: "OOOOOH! AHHHHHHH! ! AUUUUGGGGHHHH! OUCCCCCHHHHHHHHHH!"

After the dust settled or more appropriately the bananas settled, Ragna was buried six-feet deep under huge piles of tropical fruits.

Suddenly a menacing right arm gets out from the huge pile of bananas. Followed by the upper body of Ragna: "OOOOAAARRGGHHHHHHHHHHH!" who moaned like an evil zombie, that was about to wreck havoc on Baghdad. This sight would've scared little children if the setting of the scene was at night and in a graveyard. But since, the scene was set at a daytime and in the busy marketplace of Baghdad. The supposedly scary scene of Pseudo-Zombie Ragna coming out of the huge piles of bananas looked more like a parody than a pastiche (an artistic work in a style that imitates that of another work or artist). And that ultimately drew laughter from the crowd: "Hahahahaha..." "Hehehehehe..."Ahahahahah" "Bwahahaha..."

When Ragna came out of his fruity grave he saw that Abu was already enjoying fruits of his of his painful and humiliating labour. This greatly pissed off Ragna as that little vermin had planned this sit all along just so he could eat a lot of bananas.

"ABUUUUUUUUUUUUU!" The little monkey on finding out that Ragna was about hurt him immediately ran away. When Ragna started to chase after the little vermin his foot slipped on (ironically) fully peeled banana (a whole banana with no skin): "WOOOOAAAHH!"

 _"CRASH!"_ He fell down quite painfully. Then an age old question was finally answered. Can a person fall down just as badly on a fully peeled banana as one would when stepping up on its peel? Quite frankly Ragna never wanted to find answers to such useless mysteries of life and that too in a painful manner.

When Ragna got up, he saw that Abu was sitting on the shoulder of a handsome young man that he knew all too well. The aforementioned young man wore a large turban (with what appears to resemble neck shade coming down on opposite sides) complete with a ruby gem and bluish, deep purple feather, cream undergarments, and a matching top, with a cape flowing down, just below his calves. He also wore golden brown shoes, with swirled tips.

"Aladdin?" Ranga gasped.

"Abu! How could you? I thought that your new year's resolution was to be kind to dumb animals." As Aladdin aimed dig at Ragna. Being the violent person he is, Ragna would have under normal circumstances have kicked anyone as for that snarky remark. But this wasn't anyone else; it was Aladdin- Ragna's childhood friend. One of the many virtues of Aladdin was that he didn't go overboard with his teasing. It was a sort of opening banter with Ragna whenever they meet after a long time.

"Says a guy who sleeps with a monkey. I'm not really interested in knowing whether your relationship with Abu is a platonic or a romantic one." Ragna grinned.

"Dam! You and your sick comeback." Both them shook their hands in an arm wrestle sort of manner and immediately followed it up by hugging each other.

"Well, how am I suppose to trump your 'be kind to dumb animals' dig if I don't use my trump card."

"Trump card? Get out of here."

"Dude, it's really hard for me to hug you right now. Especially considering when you have Abu on your shoulders." As Ragna tried to change the subject.

"Say what?" Aladdin emphasized on the word 'what'.

"Plain and simple your monkey hates me."

"Abu doesn't hate you."

"That dam monkey insulted my mama."

"Oh, I'm pretty sure he was having fun." Aladdin then turned his head towards his right shoulder where Abu was sitting: "You didn't mean that, did you?"

"Owwwmmmh...Ownnnhhhh..." Abu cooed in his monkey tongue that-he didn't mean to insult Ragna's mother.

"On the contrary Ragna, Abu loves you."

"Seriously you're wrong at every level. Not only, did he made fun of my mother. But he also used me as a human bull..." Ragna then pointed both of his arms at the huge pile of bananas where he was buried deep not so long ago: "...to get all these bananas from that tree."

"My point exactly. You know Abu isn't always like that. He seemed to be annoyed with people outside his friend's circle. He broods a lot. He complains. He is moody. But when he is around you, he acts like a...you know...a monkey. Joyous, energetic and mischievous. He always seems to have fun whenever you're around Ragna."

"That dam monkey ASSAULTED ME!"

"Ragna you don't have to shout to get your point across."

Ragna then looked down in embarrassment: "Oh sorry."

Aladdin then put his right hand on Ragna's shoulder: "Believe me, when I say this. Abu is quite fond you. He still hasn't gotten used to Jaz."

"Did someone say Jaz?" Came out a voice of a young female. Immediately Abu countenance went from mischievous to that of annoyance.

Ragna turned his head around and he saw an extremely beautiful woman of average height. She had medium skin, long lustrous black hair, brown eyes, and a distinct hourglass figure. Her clothing consist of sky blue cropped tube top that reveals her midriff and her navel with sewn-in sleeves for her arms, matching pants, and light sky blue curled shoes. With the outfit, her hair is tied in a ponytail held together by two sky blue bands matching her outfit, and ending in a small swirl. She wears a sky blue headband that is centered with a sapphire adorned into it. To complement her clothing, two large golden earrings that dangle from her ears completely covering them, and a matching necklace. Ragna knew who she was. She was the next in line to the throne of the kingdom of Agrabah; Princess Jasmine.

"See what I mean." Aladdin pointed out Abu's sudden foul mood to Ragna.

"Were you boasting about your fiancé in front of your friends again Aladdin?" As Jasmine hugged her lover.

"Words are not enough to define your beauty, my love." As both Aladdin and Jasmine kissed each other.

"BLARGHHHH!" Abu was almost about throw up. But it didn't draw the same reaction on Ragna. He could actually understand Abu's feelings. Aladdin and Jasmine were quite a lovey-dovey couple. All of this reminded Ragna of his past self. How he was in a similar kind of relationship with another girl just like Jasmine.

After the kiss, Jasmine then spotted Ragna and immediately hugged him: "Ragna! It's so nice to see you again."

"Same here Jasmine. Been a while huh? "

"Time sure does fly Ragna." Jasmine said after breaking the hug: "Wish she was still here. I mean whenever I come to Baghdad I always have a nice girl time with her." On hearing the word "her" Ragna's mood immediately shifted from festiveness to that of glumness. But he pretended not to show it. Pretending and not showing his real emotions were one of the few things that he shared with Jin. Otherwise, they were polar opposite in terms of personality.

"Hehehe...Yeah...So what were you guys doing here in Baghdad?" Ragna asked as he scratched the backside of his head.

"Oh, Aladdin didn't tell you? Why didn't you tell Ragna why we're here?" Jasmine looked at Aladdin in a menacing yet in a cute manner.

"Hey, Jaz I was about to tell him..."

"What's going on here?" Ragna interjected.

"Well, you see Rags..." Aladdin then shifted his gaze towards Jasmine: "How about I talk with him alone...huh?" He then bowed: "May I have permission to have some guy time with Ragna, your majesty?"

"You may my royal servant." As Jasmine offered her hand to Aladdin.

Aladdin then kissed her hand: "This humble servant is under your gratitude, your royal highness." Aladdin then mischievously smiled at Ragna: "Let's go Magic Carpet."

"What the hel are you sayiiii..." As Ranga was literally thrown into the air by a mysterious object: "...IIIIIIIIIIINNNNGGG...?" Ragna thought he was about to fall back to earth in quite a painful manner as he didn't see any pottery stalls to break his fall this time around; but out of nowhere, he was safely caught in midair by a purple carpet.

When Ragna recovered from his initial shock, he found out that he was still levitating twelve feet above the ground thanks to a purple carpet. Ranga immediately jumped down as he didn't want to be in the company of a demonic carpet any longer: "HOLY SIT Al? THIS CARPET IS POSSESSED BY A GENIE! OH GOD! OH GOD! WHAT THE HEL IS GOING ON HERE?" As Ragna pointed his fingers at the purple carpet.

"You mean Magic Carpet? Nah it's not possessed by a genie. But I'm friend with a blue genie though." As Aladdin tried to calm Ragna down.

"WHAT THE FACK MAN? WHY THE HEL WOULD YOU BE FRIENDS WITH AN EVIL GENIE?" Ragna panicked.

"Evil is not the right adjective for him, more like comedic. But you should be glad that he is not here with me right now. "

"IT DOESN'T FACKING MATTER." Ragna then points his index finger at the Magic Carpet: "THIS DAM CARPET! IF IT'S NOT POSSESSED BY A GENIE, THEN WHY IS IT MOVING ON ITS OWN? LAST TIME I CHECKED CARPET ARE SUPPOSE TO BE SEEN NOT FLY! NOT FACKING FLY! DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA HOW CREEPY THAT IS?"

"Chill, Ragna. Chill. His name is Magic Carpet. As the name suggests it's being powered by magic. As far as its origin goes I have no idea. But I can assure you that it's not being possessed by Dark Souls. Now what I want you to do right now is that you relax. Take a deep breath. Come on Ragna...Inhale and exhale slowly..." As suggested, Ragna took some deep breaths to compose himself.

Jasmine giggled: "Boy he sure is panicky. So unlike Jin, who was so calm and composed in comparison." On hearing Jin's name, Ragna mood became even grimmer. It had been three weeks now since his father and his brother have gone missing; with little to no clues regarding their current whereabouts.

On spotting Ranga's grim mood Aladdin coughed: " _Cough_... _cough_...Hey Jaz. Why don't you just take care of Abu? While me and Ragna go for a...ummm...walk..." Aladdin secretly gestured to Jasmine that Ragna was in a grim mood right now and he needs to be alone.

"Okay, but don't take too long darling." Aladdin then hands over Abu to Jasmine. However, the little monkey initially tried to resist but it didn't work. Jasmine then hugged Abu and took him away: "Oh, my dear Abu. We are going to have lot fun today. I hope you like pedicure and manicure?"

"Ommwwuurrr...n...Muunnnooor (Pedicure and Manicure)?...HUMMMRRRRRRR!" As Abu screamed in fear.

"Hey Al! I don't like this. Where is she going? " Ragna asked. But when he turned his head around, he saw that Aladdin had already mounted his flying carpet.

"Forget her Ragna. Say, do you wanna go for a ride?"

"Your Magic Carpet? Hel no!"

"Come on Ragna! I already told you that it's not possessed by genie or ghost for that matter."

"Gh...os...ttttt?" Ranga almost shat his pants on hearing the most dreaded word: "Who said I was afraid of gho...stttt?"

"I never said you were. Come on Ragna. Do you trust me?" As Aladdin offered his hand to Ragna to mount on the Magic Carpet.

"Yessss...But only on one condition..."

"What would that be?"

"Just don't hum that cheesy song Whole New World along the way."

"Deal! Promise you won't call me Prince Ali Ababwa then?"

"You got yourself a deal Mr. Ali Ababawa." Ragna grinned as he accepted Aladdin's hand to mount on the Magic carpet.

Immediately, the carpet took off at such a speed that Ragna could feel that his lips and his cheeks were forced to expose his pearly whites in all its glory: "NOT AS FUN AS I THOUGHT IT WOULD BEEEEEEEEE!" Steadily, the speed of the Magic Carpet normalized.

"You okay there Ragna?" Aladdin asked.

"I could have sworn that you have pulled that off on purpose."

"Nah! You're just imagining things Ragna. It always happens when you're flying the Magic Carpet for the first time. But you'll get used to it. Look! We are already on the outskirts of Baghdad." When Ragna looked at his surroundings, he noticed that they were indeed outside of Baghdad as Aladdin suggested: "How quick is this thing?"

"You wanna go at Supersonic speed again?" Aladdin grinned mischievously.

"Two words. Hel no!" Ranga then saw something quite beautiful. It was a dazzling floral life that was growing in the middle of a desert. It was one of the few oases left in Baghdad. As the Magic Carpet flew within the touching distance of the crystal clear water of the oasis; it allowed Ragna to see his own reflection in the sparkling water. He tried to drink it. It was cool and refreshing, that beautifully contrasted with the hotness of Baghdad.

The magic carpet then alleviated towards the sky, so high that Ranga body had touched some of the clouds there. When Ragna looked down, the streets of Baghdad and its inhabitants looked as tiny as ants. The already marvelous Castle of Caylip Nazid (Emperor of NOL) looked even more impressive from bird's eye view.

Their next stop was the ancient City of Giza, Egypt where a humble sculptor was perfecting the nose of The Great Pharoah Ramses III using a hammer and a chisel. On seeing the strange sight of two youths on a flying carpet gave the humble sculptor a huge scare: "EKKKKKKKKKK!" But seeing such outlandish sight was the least of his worries, as his jumpy reaction resulted in the accidental destruction of the once impressive nose of Ramses III which he was working on all night long. On realizing his mistake: "AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH." He screamed for the second time. As he dreaded that the current Pharoah would not be in good mood when he realizes that his great father's (Ramses') face was missing a nose.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA..." Both Ragna and Aladdin howled in laughter on seeing the mistake of epic proportion from the expert sculptor. The Magic Carpet then took its two passengers to see the rare sight of a herd of horses running together in harmony. On seeing the alluring white beast, wild and free brightened the otherwise grim mood of Ragna.

Aladdin observed positivity on Ragna's countenance. This was basically the reason he had asked Ragna to ride him on the Magic Carpet in the first place. Ragna was for one reason or another was feeling quite gloomy when they first met at the marketplace: "Glad you're enjoying the ride. However, our next stop is the ancient city of Athens." Aladdin grinned.

As promised they had arrived at Athens. Where Ragna saw the famous Lyceum; a school founded by the great philosopher Aristotle. He also saw the huge temple dedicated to the city patron deity Athena. Ragna wished that he could have visited these places inside out. No matter how brief their trip to the Athens was, he was only grateful to see all of these historical places; which he otherwise would have read only on books.

"Awwwww! Did Ranga-poo fall heads over heels for Athens? Did he blush? That was a blush right? Sho cute."

"I bet that I don't even blush as half as you do whenever Jasmine is around." Ragna winked at Aladdin.

"Hahahaha...That's the Ragna I know and love. If you have loved Athens then our next stop would definitely make you scream like a little fangirl inside."

"Don't count on it."

 **At the Rooftop of Emperor Zhu Di's Palace, Forbidden City, China.**

Enjoying New Year's fireworks in the largest Palace Complex in human history was definitely an honour only a select few had the privilege to see. Quite honestly, Ragna was screaming like a Nu-13 level of fangirl inside. As this palace complex was forbidden to both commoners and outsiders alike. Only the Emperor and his children were allowed to roam inside the 178 acres of land; which had 900 buildings and mindboggling 9,999 rooms.

"Hey! Drink this." As Aladdin passes a transparent bottle containing a white liquid that apparently looked like a milk.

"What's that?"

"Cold-Cream Milk. I know you were used to drinking poison back in Samarkand. But Jeez Ragna! Just drink it!" Aladdin sarcastically replied as he sipped his own bottle of Cold-Cream Milk.

Ragna then drank the cold beverage. He always loved the feeling of residual sweetish cream on his tongue whenever he drank Cold-Cream Milk. Ranga never figured how the Confectioners of Agrabah were able to make it. The only plausible theory he could come up with was that they combined Ice-Cream, butter, and Pistachio with a delicious, cold milk. They also added translucent vermicelli that was specifically made to absorb the maximum flavour of Cold-Cream Milk. So it was a beverage that could not only be enjoyed by drinking it but also by eating it (the vermicelli part).

"I'm glad that you're finally relaxed now Ragna." Aladdin smiled as he was looking at the magnificent fireworks.

"You keep on saying that. I'm not depressed friend."

"I have known you for a long time. You and Jin for one reason or another religiously attempt to hide your true emotions. But unlike him, you're face is quite expressive. I can easily tell when you're depressed and when you're not. If you wanna talk about it, then I'm willing to lend my willing ears at your service."

"Shut up." Ragna smiled. He was glad that he had a friend like Aladdin in his life. Ragna was a loner by nature, thus he had few friends. They might be fewer in number, but they were quality friends like Aladdin.

"Listen I appreciate that you're doing all of this for me. But I'm pretty okay Al."

"Whatever you say, pal."

Ragna then began to ponder as he sipped on his bottle of Cold-Cream Milk. Should he tell Aladdin what happened to him since last three weeks or should he not?

After much philosophical debate on his mind, Ragna finally made up his mind: "Al! I don't...know how to say this..."

"Wow! I thought you would offer more resistance. Oh Boy, your training under Jubei sure made you meek."

"I'm no Noel, Al."

"But still I'm glad Ragna. I might not have solved all your problems. But sharing your problems with your friends is the best way to release burden from your mind. But after offering my customary false humility. You should know that I'm engaged to the Crown Princess of Agrabah. So I have more influence than anyone out there." Aladdin winked at Ragna.

"False humility kinda suits your image, your majesty."

Aladdin then clapped three times: "Chop Chop. More storytelling and less lame comebacking."

"Lame comebacking? Fack you... _Sigh!_...Alright! Where do I begin?" Ranga then took a deep breath: "Haaaahh...Well, it all began when I returned to my home from Samarkand..."

 _~Fifteen Minutes Later~_

"Ragna! I'm so sorry about your family. I pray to Logos that they are alive and well."

"I hope so man. But God! Things are really messy right now. Noel gave me a piece of paper that had a Japanese letter Ten (天) written on it. After a long, long search, I managed to find some random guy who had the same facking Japanese letter (Ten) printed on the backside of his green cloak. Strangely, that green-cloaked individual clearly knew who I was. Then he ran off as if I was carrying leprosy on my as. Obviously, I chased after that runt. He then got inside a heavily guarded building that had a facking Golden Gear Wheel symbol on its roof. More specifically that Gear Wheel symbol had nine cogs on it."

"Nine cogs? Golden Gear Wheel Symbol?"

"I thought that building belonged to Leviores Brotherhood but I couldn't that dam place anywhere on the map. The librarian insisted that there weren't any branches of Leviores Brotherhood in the entirety of NOL Empire. The funny thing is that the place where I thought I saw that Leviores Brotherhood lodge, that place is totally blank on the maps. That dam building doesn't exist on the face of the earth according to those maps. I'm beginning to suspect that the only reason I saw that dam place was due to temporary insanity."

"Which street was it exactly where you had seen that building?" Aladdin asked.

"That building was located at Haifa Street near the Shorjah Gardens."

"Shorjah Gardens eh?" As Aladdin begins to caress his chin to help him think better.

"You won't believe me. But you're not going insane. You might already have gone cuckoo but that's an entirely different issue altogether."

"Fack you." Ranga hissed.

"But Leviores Brotherhood lodges do exist in Baghdad. In fact, thirteen of them are operational right now."

"What? But it didn't even show up on those maps."

"Think about it Ragna. Why was there even blank space on those maps in the first place? Even though you saw that building yourself. And furthermore, why did that place had such heavy security? Who were they trying to protect?"

"How am I suppose to know?"

"Ranga...Leviores Brotherhood is not looked upon kindly by the common folks of Baghdad."

"What the hel are you saying Al? Why would the common men be so dead set against the members of Leviores Brotherhood in the first place?" Why the fack would they need all that heavy security in the first place?"

"It's an assembly of some of the most powerful and richest men of NOL empire. They will work together for their common goals. Their exclusive goals. The will seek to protect each other's interest at the expense of common men. As for your second question I hope my previous explanation is enough to satisfy your curiosity."

"It doesn't make much sense Al."

"In time it would."

Ragna groaned:"GAWD! Time is something that I don't have right now. I need to get inside that sitty building. I need to have access to the archives room there. The main problem is that I can't even get inside of that dam building without bringing a small army."

"Small army? Ragna that's extreme. You and thinking big, go hand-to-hand. Thankfully there's a less violent way. Obviously, that green cloaked individual that you were chasing that day must've been one of the members of the lodge right? Otherwise, they wouldn't have allowed him to get inside. Find a way to become a member of that lodge."

"Yeah, that could work as well."

"You should think small sometimes Ragna. Your tiny brain can't handle big ideas."

"Well, I gotta tiny but functional brain. You've got a large brain that is as functional as that of an elephant."

"Nice comeback." Aladdin grinned as he lay down on the roof to enjoy the sight of beautiful stars at night.

 **Haifa Street**

Ragna headed back to Haifa Street which was supposedly the location of one of the thirteen lodges of Leviores Brotherhood in NOL Empire. He intended to study the mysterious building from outside in order to figure out its blueprint and its structure. He was hoping that he could find its blindspot from where he could sneak inside the building.

From what Ragna could observe his first impression of this building wasn't off the mark. This place was indeed heavily guarded; even more so on working days. He also noted that there were various people out there all wearing cloaks of distinct colours. One person was wearing a yellow cloak, the other was wearing pink, maroon, dark blue, sky blue, white, grey cloak and so forth. Each and every person who wore these fashion disasters were allowed entrance into the building. Perhaps these signature cloaks were only worn by the members themselves?

"Hey, Ragna. Watcha doin?"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH...NOT NOWWWWW..." Ragna jumped in fear. It had to be her. But wait! That voice? It sounded more like that it belonged to a young boy than that of a girl.

Ragna tried to compose himself as he slowly turned around to confirm his suspicion. It was: "Big bro what happened? It seems like you've seen a ghost." Said a young man of average height, who had brown eyes, a pale complexion, and eye-length, styled brown hair. He wore a black collar skintight jacket with short sleeves and cross emblems, black fingerless gloves with red guards, a black trouser with a red belt, and black-red boots.

Ragna knew who he was. Thankfully it was his cousin and his biggest fanboy: "Oh! It's you Naoto. What the heck are you doing here?"

"Big Bro, I'm a member here. Attendance is mandatory, as in sixty-six percent of the time."

"Sixty-six percent attendance? What the hel are you even saying Naoto? How come you're a member of Leviores Brotherhood?" Ragna was flabbergasted.

"Leviores Brotherhood?"

"Isn't this joint owned by Leviores Brotherhood?" As Ragna pointed his fingers at the building.

"Big Bro! This is officially one of the branches of Rotary Club."

"Rotary Club?"

Ragna then tried to process all the conflicting information given to him by Naoto. His cousin insisted that this place belonged to Rotary Club. But Aladdin, on the other hand, deduced that this building was one of the lodges of Leviores Brotherhood. Maybe Aladdin was telling the truth. Maybe, there were lodges of Leviores Brotherhood in Baghdad but not on this part of the city. Perhaps this building indeed belonged to Rotary Club. Given that Naoto was a member of this organization.

"So how do I become a member of Rotary Club?"

"What are you talking about Big Bro?" Naoto was dumbfounded.

"YOU IDIOT!" Ragna punched Naoto on his head: "I'm sorry Big Bro...I'm a fool...I'm a fool..."

"Let me rephrase that Naoto. How do you become a member of Rotary Club?"

"Oh, that! First, you'll have to fill up a membership form in which you'll have to state your age, your gender, and your occupation etcetera...etceteras-then you'll have to deposit one hundred fifty non-refundable gold coins as your name is registered in waiting lists. And if your occupation matches with Rotary Club occupation quotas then you're given the membership immediately, along with the ceremonial cloak. You can't gain entrance into the building without the ceremonial cloak though."

"How long does it take for one to become a member?"

"Five to eight years big bro."

"Fiv...fi...ve TO EIGHT YEARSSSSSS!"

"Ahhh! Big Bro...Are you okay? You seemed a little bit..." Naoto gulped: "psychotic..." He immediately covered his head: "I'm sorry big bro...I'm a fool...I'm a fool...Please...Don't hit me..."

Ragna then tried to compose himself as he thought for a moment: _"Maybe Naoto could prove useful after all considering that he is a member of this organization."_

"At ease cousin, I'm not angry with you."

"Oh, thank you Ragna!"

"But in exchange for my kindness, you'll have to lend me your Rotarian's cloak. Am I calling it right? It's called Rotarian right?"

"Ah! What're you talking about Big Bro?" Naoto asked innocently.

"JUST GIVE ME YOUR DAM CLOAK! OTHERWISE, I WOULD FORCEFULLY TEAR INTESTINE FROM YOUR BODY AND WOULD ROADSKIP WHILE I'M AT IT." Ranga barked while he grabbed his cousin by his collars.

Naoto turned his head away as he didn't want to be smacked by Ragna: "I'm sooooo sorry big bro...I forgot to bring mine today... I'm a fool...I'm a fool..."

Ragna immediately felt bad for bullying Naoto: "I'm sorry for my earlier outburst Naoto. You don't need to apologize."

"No Ragna. You're the best. You're one of the most literate men in Baghdad. Plus you're a capable sword fighter. You're everything that I'm not. I'm nothing but a fool."

"STOP CALLING YOURSELF A FOOL! YOU FOOL!"

"I'm sorry...I'm sorry..."

"Again, I'm sorry for my outburst Naoto. But tell me, how can I become a member of Rotary Club quickly?"

"You don't have to big bro. You're already a member."

"What the fack are you saying Naoto?"

"Uncle Joeseph was already a member of Rotary Club, right? And so is Uncle Kisaragi. As an SOP of Rotary Club, you can inherit your father's cloak and along with his membership..." Naoto then looked down in sadness as he remembered his own father: "...just like I did mine."

"Naoto? Are you crying?"

"I'm not crying. I just got a dust on my eyes. Honest, I'm not really crying." Naoto then tried to change the subject: "But you can't really find your father's cloak lying around the room. It's a valuable item as SOP dictates all members are required to hide their ceremonial cloak in a safe place."

"Okay! Okay, I just need to find my father's cloak back at the mansion. That's not a big deal. And thank you Naoto."

"Why are you thanking me Ragna?"

"Don't be modest. You've been a major lifesaver for me. But Naoto! I need to ask you something very important. Do you have any knowledge regarding my family disappearances?"

"I'm sorry...I don't know anything...I'm really am sorry about Uncle Joeseph and Jin...big bro..."

Ragna grumbled: "AAAAAAAHHHHH...Figures..." Ragna then remembered that he could ask Naoto regarding the mysterious person who had a 天(Ten) symbol on the backside of his green cloak: "Naoto could you tell me..."

"SEEMS LIKE OUR NAOTO BOY HAS MADE A NEW DROOG (friend) TODAY! FORGET ABOUT YOUR OLD DROOGIES (friends) LOVE." Came a voice of a young man.

Both Naoto and Ragna turned their heads towards the direction where that said voice came from. It belonged to a young man, who was roughly around Naoto's age. He had a dirty blonde, pageboy hair and had sported a fake eyelash on his right eye. His clothing consisted of a white shirt, matching trousers and a black bowling hat. He was surrounded by fifteen adolescents who all wore the same attire as their young leader. Their leader was tapping his walking stick on the ground in a threatening manner _"tick, tick, tick, tick,...tick..."_

"Ahhhhhhh! Excuse me for a second Ragna." As Naoto tottered towards the mysterious youth.

"I'm so sorry Mister De Large...AHHHHHH..." Suddenly Alex De Large put his cane inside Naoto mouth: "Something on your mouth Naoto boy? Allow us to viddy (see). Seems finely...Govoreet (speak) Naoto boy govoreet (speak)..." Naoto then nodded.

"I'M SO SORRY MISTER DE...LARGE...I forgot to bring the money today..."

"Lend me a dozen of ears, droogies (friends)...Our Naoto boy has forgot to bring pretty polly (money) today..."

"Mister De Large...I'm really sorry..."

Alex De Large then put his arm around Naoto's shoulders: "No need for appy polly loggies (apologies) my long-suffering droog (friend). It happens to the best of us."

"Aaaahhhhh! Thank you Mister De Large."

"Naoto boy...I'm quite fond of you. But you shouldn't be thanking me..."

"What do you mEEEEEEAAAAANNNN?" Suddenly Alex tackles Naoto on the ground and then he assaults the poor boy with his cane constantly: "Think not of this as a punishment my unreliable droog (friend). But rather think of it as a tough love."

Naoto screamed in agony: "AHHHHHHHH...I'M SOOOOOOOOO SORRY MISTER DE LARGE...I PROMISE I WILL BRING THE MONEY NEXT TIME...AHHHHHH..."

"Tsk...Tsk...Tsk...This boy doesn't seem to pony (understand). Naoto my boy, you don't get...NEXT TIMEEEEE...!" As Alex De Large attempted to finish off Naoto with one powerful blow. However, his cane never reached its intended target as it was stopped in midway by a powerful hand. When Alex turned his head up he saw Ragna: "Well Salam old chap. Who might you be?"

Suddenly Alex got a powerful, knockout punch from Ragna: "Your father, you dipsit. You're late for dinner."

"LEADERRRRR!" As six of Alex's henchmen tried to attack Ragna. However, all six of them were knocked out by Ragna with his punches and his kicks combination.

Ragna never liked the idea of beating the crap out of juvenile delinquents. As they're mostly frustrated youths. They were frustrated to see their fathers in dead-end jobs. They were frustrated to see them badly exploited by their employers. And they were mostly afraid that they would end up doing the same dead-end jobs as their parents did before them.

So they sought escapism by two means. They either seek a career in a professional wrestling and if they are good enough, then they would end up under Caylip Nazid patronage; where they would live a life full of luxury and comfort. Or they could go for a more deviant path of streets gangs.

Various Caylips (Emperor) of NOL were partially responsible for this, as they had given freehand to various employers to hire labour at a minimum of wages possible and under the harshest of the working environments possible. He could actually sympathize with these frustrated youths plight.

Ragna then proceeded to cup Naoto's face in order inspect his injuries. His cousin was quite a bloody mess now; broken nose, black eyes, bruised lips and blood on every part of his face. Ragna knew why he was so overprotective of Naoto. He was meek, harmless and innocent. His cousin was literally a male version of Noel.

"DAM IT NAOTO! YOU COULD HAVE EASILY TAKEN DOWN FIFTY OF THESE AS CLOWNS BY YOURSELF WITHOUT A BREAKING A SWEAT!"

Naoto then panicked: "Ragna you don't understand..." Suddenly Ragna hears an exploding, whistling sound from a mini-rocket firecracker. It was being released by Alex De Large: "Death comes to us all. But unfortunately for you baboochka (grandma), it's long overdue."

"DID YOU JUST FACKING CALL ME BABOOCHKA (grandma)?" Ragna smoldered. But suddenly he realized why Alex had used that rocket firecracker in the first place. It was a signal for all of Alex's gang member to aid their leader in battle. Ragna now understood why Naoto was so unwilling to fight against these juvenile delinquents. There at least two hundred bloodthirsty teenagers that were now after Ragna's as.

"PLEASE MISTER DE LARGE! SPARE MY COUSIN! HE DIDN'T KNOW WHO YOU WERE!" As Naoto started to plead.

"NAOTO! SAVE YOUR BREATH! THIS BOY ALEXANDER WON'T UNTIL YOU AND I ARE DEAD!"

"Okay!" Naoto gulped.

Ragna then cracked his fist and his neck: "Brace yourself cousin, cause it's clobbering time!"

"Big bro I will defend you till my last breath."

"Let us just hope that it doesn't...COME TO THAT!" Ragna shouted as both he and Naoto simultaneously punched their respective assaulters away. With that, all of the gang members ran towards Ragna and Naoto. Both Ragna and Naoto attacked their oncoming assaulters with punches, kicks, dodge, and repeat. They managed to take down scores of them. But the wave upon wave of Alex De Large goons were not to be stopped anytime soon. Ragna knew that they need to plan their next move well or they won't be getting out of Haifa Street alive. So he joined his back against Naoto and whispered: "Listen Naoto. We won't last long fighting like this. But we can get out this place alive if you follow my instruction exactly as I say."

"I'm all ears, big bro."

"First thing first. Do these guys know where you live?"

"No." Naoto replied.

"Good! They don't where I live either. So here is the plan little cousin." Ragna points in a specific direction: "Just look at the place where I'm pointing my fingers at right now. It's an opening."

"Okay!"

"These kids aren't that much smart. As you can see there is a relatively lesser concentration of these goons than anywhere else. If we focus our joint effort there, we could clear that area in no time and then we can make a run for our homes."

"I hear you."

"Good on the count of three. One, two and..." Both Naoto and Ragna screamed together: "THREE!" As they focused their attacks on clearing that specific part of the street. Naoto himself was a capable fist fighter, as he was trained by Ragna himself. Ragna was sure that Naoto was even better than his brother Jin in that regard.

When it finally looked like that they were successful in their endeavors, out of nowhere Ragna gets stab on his back by one of Alex's goon: "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHH..." He was already feeling weak from the initial attack, but suddenly a second gang member stabbed Ragna on his chest: "AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHH..." He had no strength left to fight against these two assaulters anymore. As of right now, Ragna was a sitting duck.

On hearing his cousin scream: "RAAAAAAAAGNNNNNNNNAAAAAAAA!" As Naoto raced towards Ragna and finished off the two stabbers with his punches and kicks. Ragna was about to fall down on the ground when suddenly Naoto supported his cousin by putting his (Ragna's) arm on his shoulders: "Are you okay Big bro? How much deep are your wounds?" Naoto panicked.

"Naoto...this is your chance...to escape... _cough...!_ " As Ranga spat out some blood from his mouth, which made Naoto, even more, panic: "But I won't leave without you..."

"SHUT UP! JUST DO WHAT I SAY, STUPID KID! NO ARGUMENTS!"

"Sorry."

"Good boy!...Ha..ha..ha..ha..Now at the count three...One, two and... ...RUNNNNNNNNNNNNN!" As both Ragna and Naoto ran towards the area which they have managed to clear recently. Since their (Ragna and Naoto) respective homes were in different parts of Baghdad they ran their separate ways.

Ragna was sure that Naoto would be safe by now as he was a fast runner, but unfortunately for him; he could not run just as fast. As he had already lost a great deal of his blood and his strength after getting stabbed on his body two times. He was sure that it wouldn't take long for Alex De Large goons to catch up to him and eventually kill him. He had to carefully plan his next move. Ragna then scanned his environment for a good hiding place and the only spot he could find was a dark alley where a group of hobos were sleeping peacefully under a warm bonfire. This alley could prove to be a good hiding place for the time being.

Ragna was successful in hiding himself, as the foolish gang members ran past the alley without ever looking there. But his success was only temporary, as they would definitely come back to look for Ragna after they would have realized that he was not out in the streets. So had had a very small window of opportunity to work on his next scheme for his survival. Ragna looked around and suddenly realized that he was surrounded by hobos who could prove their worth given the right price.

He then threw some silver coins at the two hobos which diverted their attention towards Ragna: "Here's some money. I need your hat now." Ragna then points his fingers at the second hobo: "You! Give me your shirt and your cardigan." As Ragna was about to throw his jacket on the bonfire; the second hobo immediately grabs hold of Ragna arms: "Don't burn that! It's a nice jacket." Ragna nodded as he hands over his jacket to the second hobo.

After wearing these clothing items Ragna started to feel itchiness. Those hobos weren't too much keen on hygiene. Regardless, beggars can't be choosers, and for his own sake, he had to make sure that he played the part of a beggar well. So he put some dirt on his face and dashed straight towards his way to home.

 **Vampirherzen Residence**

Somehow, Ragna was able to reach his mansion alive; but his condition had not improved one bit. One of the reasons Ragna planned to retreat back to his home (besides evading Alex's lackeys) was because he recalled that his father, Joeseph used to wear a hooded cloak that was very similar to the one worn by the members of Rotary Club. It was red in colour and had a Japanese symbol on its backside.

If he could find his father's cloak, he could finally get inside that dam building and hopefully get all of his answers from there. As Ragna started to walk towards his father's room, he immediately coughed out some more blood from his mouth. Seconds by seconds he was getting weaker. Seconds by seconds he was feeling dangerously tired.

After getting stabbed, he naturally lost a lot of blood. Plus, he expended most of his energy on trying to evade Alex's goons. Because of which, Ragna was already struggling to move his body around.

But he had no choice but to find his father's cloak. After taking few more steps Ragna collapsed on the mansion's floor. He tried to get up, but he couldn't move. His body was no longer responding to his commands. His eyes slowly & steadily started to get heavy. Until all he could now was a pitch, black darkness. With a huge of loss blood and him collapsing on the floor, Ragna wasn't really sure whether he would live to see the next day.

* * *

 **A/N: I gotta say I'm really proud of myself after writing this chappie. Writing Alex De Large character in this chappie and making him relevant to the whole narrative was quite a daunting task. He is both iconic and a complicated character. Alex, as you all know, is the main protagonist of the film "A Clockwork Orange". One of the best movies of the legendary director Stanley Kubrick. Alex De Large has inspired fan-favourite characters like Hannibal Lecter (Silence of The Lambs), Yoshikage Kira (Jojo Bizarre Adventure), Patrick Bateman (American Psycho), Jordan Belfort (Leonardo Di Caprio's Character in The Wolf of Wall Street) and countless others.**

 **The biggest difficulty that came while writing Alex De Large character was his speech pattern and his complicated psyche. I had to spend countless hours of research and watched numerous youtube videos in order to understand his character better. Plus I had to rely on Nadsat Dictionary 24/7 while writing his dialogues. Nadsat is a fictional language created by "A Clockwork Orange" author Anthony Burgess. Nadsat is a combination Old English, Anglicized Russian, and some good ol British Slang. Cool huh.**

 **I'd like to give a little shout-out to** **the reviewer "Sandwich". I'm really glad that you think this fanfic is turning out to be better than you thought it'd be. Actually, your review gave me a healthy dose of confidence as a writer. I know I need to improve my grammar. So, for this reason alone, I'm have proofread this chapter three times before publishing it. **

**Say people what do you think of the fictional beverage "Cold-Cream Milk" that Ragna drinks in this chapter? Is it delicious and creamy enough for you people to try out this drink for yourself? Okay, everyone, this is Howling Blood speaking, signing off.**


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